Boliden will invest SEK750 million in a leaching plant at Rönnskär. The plant, expected to be operational at the end of 2020, aims to extract more metal from residual material. Simultaneously, the amount of waste for disposal in the deep repository at Rönnskär will be reduced.

“The investment is fully in line with our strategy to extract as much metal as technically possible from existing raw materials. This significant improvement in Rönnskär’s resource efficiency will both enhance the smelter’s competitiveness and reduce the volumes of materials for disposal, says Kerstin Konradsson, President Boliden Smelters.

The leaching plant comprises a new 45 x 135 m building located next to the quay in the Rönnskär industrial area. The plant is scheduled to come on line at the end of 2020, provided that the environmental permit for the plant is granted as expected in September 2018. The annual production will total 25,000 t of lead sulphate and 25,000 t of copper/zinc sulphate.

The investment follows the ongoing investment of SEK650 million in the deep repository at Rönnskär, expected to be completed by 2020.

Rönnskär in Skelleftehamn is one of the world’s most efficient copper smelters. The plant receives deliveries of copper and lead concentrates from Boliden’s own mines and from external suppliers. Today the smelter is a world leader in electronics recycling thanks to investments and developments in Kaldo technology. It extracts primarily copper, gold and silver.