Tag Archives: ENAEX

Enaex and NYK to explore low-carbon ammonia fuel options in copper concentrate shipping

Base metals, Environmental, Explosives and blasting, Mining services, Sustainable mining, , ,

Enaex says it has signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with the international shipping group NYK Bulk & Projects Carriers Ltd (NBP), del Grupo NYK to assess the feasibility of providing low-carbon ammonia as a fuel for ships set to carry copper concentrate.

Over the next decade, NBP plans to build between 10 and 15 Handymax bulk carriers, which will use low-carbon ammonia as their main fuel. The first of these ships is expected to arrive in Chile in 2027, to be used to transport copper concentrate produced by Codelco from Mejillones, in the Antofagasta Region, to countries in the Asian market.

Juan Andrés Errázuriz, CEO of Enaex, said: “Our company’s first value is to care for life and, as part of that commitment, we are concerned about mitigating the impacts on climate change. Therefore, we are constantly working to reduce CO2 emissions and, to date, we have reduced more than 90% of emissions in our production process. Going further along this path, we are now focused on collaborating in the reduction of emissions in the transportation of raw materials.”

According to the MoU, Enaex will have to provide the low carbon ammonia for these vessels, as well as make available for loading the facilities of its terminal in Mejillones, which until now are only used for unloading ammonia.

Errázuriz said: “Our company already has experience in the transport and production of low-carbon ammonia. At our Cachimayo plant in Peru, we are producing green ammonia and we have also imported blue ammonia from the United States.”

According to the new carbon neutrality goals established by the International Maritime Organization, the shipping industry is projected to be one of the largest consumers of low-carbon ammonia in the future.

The understanding agreement was signed Errázuriz, Hitoshi Nagasawa, President of NYK, and Masashi Suda, President of NBP, at Enaex’s offices in Santiago.

Enaex and Sasol start up Southern Africa explosives joint venture

Explosives and blasting, Mining consumables, Mining equipment, Mining services, , , , , ,

Integrated chemicals and energy company Sasol and Enaex, a subsidiary of the Sigdo Koppers Group, have announced the start of operations in Southern Africa.

The new explosives joint venture, Enaex Africa, started operating today on July 1, 2020.

In 2017, Sasol commenced with an asset review to ensure all assets in its global portfolio delivered against financial metrics and were aligned with the company’s growth strategy, the company said.

“In line with this review, Sasol’s explosives business was identified as having substantial growth potential that could be unlocked through collaboration opportunities, including the possibility of partnering with a world-class explosives brand,” Sasol said.

In June 2019, after the evaluation process, Enaex SA was selected as Sasol’s preferred strategic partner to create an explosives business on the African continent.

The new company will operate under the name of Enaex Africa. Enaex will be the majority shareholder and will take over management and operational control of the entity from July 1. Enaex, in association with Sasol, will comprise certain assets and associated activities spun off from the current explosives and rock fragmentation value chain of the base chemicals business of Sasol South Africa. This joint venture includes the associated business activities in both South Africa and other countries in Southern Africa.

Sasol President and CEO, Fleetwood Grobler, said: “We are delighted to announce that on July 1, 2020, Enaex Africa in association with Sasol, will officially start operating in South Africa and on the African Continent. Enaex is a Chilean company celebrating 100 years of history and leadership in the explosives business in South America and together with Sasol will be a force to be reckoned with in the mining industry.”

Founded in 1920 in Chile, Enaex’s core business is ammonium nitrate production – Enaex is the third-largest industrial grade ammonium nitrate producer in the world – explosives production and blasting services, according to Sasol.

“Enaex is also one of the few explosives companies in the world that can produce and offer the entire spectrum of products and solutions to execute the blasting process,” Sasol said. “The company has subsidiaries in 11 countries, including Argentina, Peru, Brazil, Colombia, France, the US, Mexico and Australia, and exports to more than 40 countries all over the world.”

Enaex, provides blasting services to some of the major mining companies in the world, such as Anglo American, BHP, Codelco, KGHM, Glencore, Vale, Yamana Gold and Teck Resources.

This deal is part of the strategic plan of Enaex to continue strengthening its international presence in the most important mining regions of the world, according to Sasol.

Francisco Baudrand, CEO of Enaex Africa, said: “This is truly an incredible day for Enaex with a new venture on a new continent. This joint venture is a platform of growth for Enaex not only in Southern Africa, but also for us to become the leaders in explosives and blasting services for the mining industry on the African continent.”

Meaningful participation for BBBEE has also been catered for in the shareholding structure in line with South Africa’s transformation agenda, which is fully supported by both Sasol and Enaex.

ENAEX and Sasol sign explosives and rock fragmentation JV to service southern Africa

Comminution of minerals, Explosives and blasting, Mining mergers and acquisitions, Mining services, , , , , ,

ENAEX, a subsidiary of the Sigdo Koppers Group, says it has reached an agreement with integrated energy and chemical company, Sasol, to become a strategic partner of its explosives and rock fragmentation division.

The agreement, signed this week after a negotiation process initiated last July, considers ENAEX to take part in the business as the controlling partner of this firm, it said. This would be formed by spinning off certain assets and associated activities within the current explosives value chain of the Base Chemicals business of Sasol South Africa.

The new joint venture company will include the associated business activities in both South Africa and the rest of the countries in Southern Africa, with the explosives division having over 1,000 employees, producing more than 350,000 t/y of explosives and generating around $250 million of revenue annually, ENAEX says.

Sasol was founded in 1950 and is today a participant in the explosives industry in South Africa, with a presence also in Namibia and Lesotho.

Juan Andrés Errázuriz, ENAEX CEO, said: “Having successfully completed the process to become a strategic partner of Sasol is a very relevant milestone for Enaex. By this, we have taken a big step in consolidating our company in international markets and expanding the value offer for our customers.”

Errázuriz said, because of its size, Africa was currently the third largest explosive market in the world, with significant growth potential.

“Towards its progress, we can contribute with the extensive knowledge, technology and innovation that we have been developing in the rock fragmentation industry for mining,” he said.

This joint venture is part of the strategic plan of ENAEX to continue strengthening its international presence in the most important mining regions of the world and is subject to any necessary approvals from public authorities, it said.