Tag Archives: ferrochrome

Repair, Reuse, Recycle: ERG’s critical minerals reprocessing journey

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The Musonoi River Valley in the Katanga region in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) has, for some decades, been the site of land degradation resulting from inadequate and ineffective tailings and other waste management systems.

The local water system and surrounding land has been subjected to pollution from more than 83.2 Mt of legacy tailings spread over an area 11-km long and up to 2.5-km wide. Additionally, 41.1 Mt of tailings have accumulated at the Kingamyambo Tailings Dam.

Remediating and mitigating this damage is now a primary goal of Eurasian Resources Group’s Metalkol Roan Tailings Reclamation (RTR), a reprocessing facility dedicated to cleaning up the historic tailings left by previous mining operators in the Kolwezi area of the DRC. By reclaiming and reprocessing copper and cobalt tailings in the region, the company says its approach goes beyond ‘do no harm’, actively addressing a history of environmental degradation and pollution.

The legacy tailings are extracted through hydraulic mining and dredging, reprocessed and then re-deposited into a modern, closely managed and centralised tailings storage facility. This is subject to regular inspection, monitoring and reporting, supported by a dedicated Engineer of Record and an independent laboratory. Currently Metalkol RTR can produce 21,000 t/y of cobalt, which is says is sufficient for three million electric vehicle batteries, alongside around 100,000 t/y of copper, the company says.

ERG also has reprocessing operations outside of Africa, including at Kazchrome in Kazakhstan, which, it says, is the world’s largest high-carbon ferrochrome producer by chrome content.

Established in 2019, ERG Recycling – ERG’s specialised company aiming to become the largest entity to reprocess industrial waste into commercial products in Kazakhstan – has already implemented many projects including the commissioning of a new workshop that reprocesses slag, dust and other fine waste into high-quality briquettes. This program to reprocess Kazchrome’s 14.7 Mt of slag stockpiles has been expanded, now processing over 100,000 t/y of slag.

These operations have been enhanced by the development of new technology. Having completed the first trial in 2020, the Slimes 2 Tailings Reprocessing project at Donskoy GOK has the potential to enhance Kazchrome’s output of chrome concentrate by recovering 55% of the chromium oxide in chrome-oxide bearing tailings using innovative flotation technology, the company says.

In Brazil, at ERG’s integrated project, BAMIN, which produces a premium 67% Fe grade iron ore and is ramping up to become one of the country’s largest standalone iron ore exporters, the company’s transition from an upstream to a downstream tailings model ensured continued compliance with both local regulations and international standards, it said. The group continues to study additional technological enhancements to ensure the construction and operation of a world-class facility.

The environmental benefits of reprocessing projects like these are very significant for the business and critical to local communities, according to the company.

“As more attention rightly turns towards environmental, social and governance (ESG) issues, it is crucial that tailings are dealt with and stored properly,” ERG said. “Aside from preventing significant issues, such as dam collapses, by reprocessing and responsibly storing these tailings, we are reducing local pollution risks more generally, increasing air quality and decreasing the likelihood of leaching toxic substances into surrounding habitats and water systems.”

Given the legacy of environmental degradation and serious consequences it poses, it is also necessary for mining companies to explore novel ways of rehabilitating the environment.

For example, ERG has been working with a team of agronomists from the University of Lubumbashi in the DRC to look into the experimental planting of trees and their growing potential at the Kingamyambo tailings dam.

Looking forward, these operations will support the sustainable development of affordable batteries and other clean energy technologies.

By producing critical raw materials, such as cobalt, without the risk and cost of needing to develop new mining projects, ERG says it can help make electric vehicles and other renewable technologies more accessible, helping facilitating the net-zero transition.

Pictured above is Metalkol RTR, ERG’s reprocessing facility in the DRC: the world’s second largest standalone cobalt producer

NFC China, ERG agree on EPC contract to construct ‘special coke plant’ at JSC Shubarkol Komir

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Eurasian Resources Group (ERG) and China Nonferrous Metal Industry’s Foreign Engineering and Construction Co Ltd. (NFC China) have signed an engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) contract to construct a “special coke plant” at JSC Shubarkol Komir in Kazakhstan’s Karaganda Region.

The new 400,000 t/y plant will produce a reducing agent that is key to the production of ferroalloys, ERG says.

Under the ЕРС contract, the plant will be constructed on a turnkey basis and is scheduled to be put into operation in 2023. Investments in the project will total about KZT40 billion ($94 million).

Ruslan Mulyukbayev, CEO of ERG Capital Projects, the company responsible for developing and implementing large-scale investment projects in Kazakhstan, said: “The new plant will enable JSC Shubarkol Komir to manufacture a high value-added product and cut the imports of reducing agents significantly. In addition, it should help increase local content in ferrochrome production and meet ERG’s needs by supplying a domestically manufactured product. The plant will use state-of-the-art technological solutions and automation that are fully compliant with all national standards. We plan to create 120 new jobs.”

Qin Junman, President of NFC, said: “The signing of the EPC contract marks another milestone in the long-term cooperation between NFC and ERG. I am fully confident that, with our good track record of successful implementation of a number world-class projects in Kazakhstan, including ERG’s state-of-the-art Aluminium Smelter project, we will be able to deliver another exemplary project of Sino-Kazakh cooperation within schedule, with good quality and with international HSE standard.”

In addition to 400,000 t of special coke, the new plant will produce more than 70,000 t/y of coal tar and oil from Shubarkol Komir’s coal. ERG is also exploring the possibility of exporting these products.

The new enterprise will use technological solutions to enable safe and environmentally friendly production, as well as to increase electricity, heat and water conservation, ERG says. Its ventilation system will be equipped with air purifiers. All water used in the production process, as well as the contaminated wastewater, will be treated and supplied to the water recycling system.

JSC Shubarkol Komir is already home to a special coke plant with a capacity of over 200,000 t/y that was built and put into operation in 2005. The company has implemented a project to equip the plant with the newest, most efficient system for tar removal from coke oven gas, a process which involves five-stages of treatment.

Kazchrome achieves chrome tailings flotation breakthrough

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Engineers at the Donskoy Ore Mining and Processing Plant of JSC TNC Kazchrome, in Kazakhstan, have successfully completed trials of a first-of-its-kind industrial flotation technology to increase the enrichment of chrome oxide-bearing tailings, Eurasian Resources Group reports.

Kazchrome, the world’s largest high-carbon ferrochrome producer by chrome content with a total resource base of over 200 Mt of chrome ore, is owned by ERG.

The novel technology is part of the group’s R&D efforts to maximise chromite concentrate output and reduce the site’s environmental footprint, the company reports, with the process yielding the recovery of over 55% of chrome oxide and conforming to the applicable requirements for concentrate used in ferrochrome smelting.

As a result of these trials, the flotation technology will be used to construct a new facility to process over 10 Mt of chrome oxide-bearing tailings with a planned annual capacity of 1.7 Mt for 450,000 t/y of chrome concentrate, ERG says.

Benedikt Sobotka, CEO of Eurasian Resources Group, said: “This pioneering technology is a major milestone on our path towards ensuring sustainable and low-cost chromite concentrate supply for our operations in Kazakhstan, and is part of the group’s broader strategy to reinforce our leading position in the global ferrochrome market.”

Sergey Opanasenko, Chairman of the Management Board of ERG R&D Centre, added: “We are very pleased with the results of the flotation trials, particularly considering the complex mineralogy and physical characteristics of our ores. Building on this success, we look forward to working on incorporating this technology into the design of our new tailings processing facility.”

Multotec keeps the ferrochrome flow going with new innovate spiral

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Following years of detailed test work in the South Africa ferrochrome sector, Multotec says it has successfully developed and proven a spiral concentrator that eliminates beaching and enhances recoveries in the 1-3 mm fractions of high-density material.

Significantly, when compared with traditional spirals, the new spiral has shown extraordinarily higher metal recoveries, even for minus 1 mm fractions in ferrochrome slag, according to the company.

“Our SC25 spiral concentrator features steeper angles which facilitate the flow of material and increase separation efficiency,” Hlayisi Baloyi, Applications Engineer at Multotec, says.

“It also widens the particle size range that can be treated by the spiral. Traditionally, spirals would struggle to efficiently treat material above 1 mm in heavy mineral applications, but this spiral can go well beyond that. The spiral has been a game changer even for the minus 1 mm size range where higher separation efficiencies have been achieved on chromite ore.”

Baloyi says this innovation has provided the minerals processing sector with an exciting alternative to jigs in the “minus 3 to plus 1 size range”, which have been one of the conventional methods of separating larger particles. The solution is cost effective as spirals use no electricity and are also easy to maintain, Multotec says. “So attractive is the new model that the first order for the commercialised version has already been placed,” the company said.

Baloyi explained: “Taking ferrochrome samples from a number of mines over a period of two to three years, we conducted extensive test work on these at our well-equipped testing facility in Spartan, near Johannesburg,” he says. “Leveraging this data with our in-house engineering design capacity, we were able to develop the optimal solution and locally manufacture the new spiral concentrator.”

Multotec said: “The institutional knowledge within Multotec has been developed over more than four decades, including valuable expertise in fluid dynamics. Hands-on experience in test work and design allows the development of prototypes that solve customers’ specific challenges – followed by scaled-up local production of equipment to match market demand.”

The economic benefits of the Multotec SC25 spiral for ferrochrome producers are substantial, as some plants were losing the value of their 1 to 3 mm material to the tailings storage facility, according to the company. Many of those who used jigs to treat this fraction were also finding that efficiencies were low.

Refentse Molehe, Process Engineer at Multotec, said ferrochrome is not the only commodity the company has successfully tested.

“We have even seen improved recovery in heavy minerals below 1 mm size, alluvial chrome, manganese slag, and there is potential in industrial recycling,” Molehe said.

Swedish Stirling powers up South Africa ferrochrome industry advances

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Swedish Stirling AB’s container-based energy recycling solution is taking off in South Africa’s ferrochrome sector, with two of the largest producers on board with the technology.

Based close to Gothenburg, Swedish Stirling Group is a clean tech company with a mission to scale up the conversion of thermal energy to electricity.

It is the company’s latest product – the PWR BLOK 400-F – that is finding favour in South Africa. This is a unique proprietary solution that uses Swedish Stirling’s Stirling engines for recovering energy from industrial residual and flare gases and converting them to 100% carbon-neutral electricity at a high rate of efficiency, according to the company.

The PWR BLOK 400-F contains 14 Stirling engines and delivers a net output of 400 kW.

Citing an independent certification, Swedish Stirling says the PWR BLOK is the cheapest way to generate electricity that exists today, yielding greater CO2 savings per Euro invested than any other type of energy.

Ferrochrome is renowned for being an energy-intensive process and load shedding is a common practice in power-constrained South Africa, hence the reason why it has been one of the frontrunners in adopting this technology.

Swedish Stirling explained: “Many industrial applications produce by-products in the form of gases (residual gas) that are currently burned without harnessing its energy content. Several solutions have been tried to recycle the energy in the gases.

“In the ferrochrome industry in South Africa, producers have tried to recover the energy using internal combustion engines, gas and steam turbines, but all solutions have failed. The reason is usually that the gas is of such uneven quality that most engines with internal combustion don’t work, or the technical solutions are extremely costly.

“The Stirling engine, on the other hand, is, due to its external combustion, almost insensitive to the type of gas that is burned or the quality of the gas in question. Therefore, it is now possible to start converting these residual gases into climate-smart electricity with PWR BLOK.”

And, this is exactly what is happening.

After installing a test PWR BLOK at Afarak Mogale’s smelter in South Africa over a year ago, the company has sealed contracts with Glencore and Samancor.

In the recent March quarter results, Swedish Stirling CEO, Gunnar Larsson, said: “Together, these (companies’ output) account for over 90% of the entire market in the country. This gives us a solid base for a wider-scale roll-out of the PWR BLOK in South Africa in the coming years.”

The agreement with Glencore will see it install and deliver up to 25 PWR BLOKs, generating 9.9 MW, to the Lydenburg smelter, while Samancor has signed up for a pilot facility with one PWR BLOK unit at the TC Smelter facility.

The company also, earlier this year, arranged a tour of the Mogale smelter for interested parties to spur further enquiries.

While the spread of COVID-19 has somewhat affected the company hitting its deadlines for these projects, it made progress with the Samancor delivery early last month, confirming that, after spending a number of weeks on a ship in Durban Harbour during the COVID-19 lockdown in South Africa, a PWR BLOK 2 unit was unloaded for transport to Samancor’s TC Smelter (pictured).

The company still hopes to install and commission the facility at TC Smelter during the June quarter as planned.

The agreement with Glencore’s Lydenburg smelter, meanwhile, could see carbon dioxide emissions from the smelter reduce by more than 80,000 t/y, due to the reduced need for purchased electricity, Swedish Stirling previously said.

Noront, Hatch and Algoma Steel sign Ring of Fire pact

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Noront Resources has announced agreements with Algoma Steel and Hatch to facilitate development of the Ring of Fire mineral district and the associated Ontario-based processing facilities, in the north of the Canadian province.

“Noront is partnering with two Ontario-based industrial and engineering giants to advance Ring of Fire development,” said Alan Coutts, President and CEO of Noront Resources. “This is truly a ‘made in Ontario’ collaboration on one of the most economically and socially important projects our province has seen.”

The agreement with Algoma provides Noront with a five-year, renewable option to lease a brownfield property in Sault Ste. Marie for a period of 99 years. Noront plans to design, construct and operate a ferrochrome production facility which will service the company’s Ring of Fire chromite deposits. This agreement provides Noront and Algoma with an opportunity to re-purpose an existing brownfield location with a view to sharing infrastructure, the exploration company said.

Michael McQuade, CEO Algoma Steel, said his company  viewed the Noront project as a valuable business partnership  and an exciting opportunity for Sault Ste. Marie.

“Our discussions have uncovered numerous economic synergies through the shared use of assets and services, and we look forward to exploring these options further with Noront, the City and the many stakeholder groups who may be engaged in this project,” he said.

In addition, Hatch will perform engineering and project support services for the Eagle’s Nest and Ring of Fire chrome projects as part of a Master Services Agreement, Noront said.

Eagle’s Nest is a nickel, copper, platinum and palladium deposit, while Noront also has chromite deposits including Blackbird, Black Thor, and Big Daddy, all of which are located in the James Bay Lowlands of Ontario.

As part of this collaboration, Hatch will participate as an equity partner with Noront, and form an integrated project management and engineering team to manage development and execution of projects in the Ring of Fire.

Joe Lombard, Hatch’s Global Managing Director of Metals, said: “The Ring of Fire represents a significant opportunity, not only for Noront and Algoma, but also for northern Ontario and local First Nations. We’re excited to be a part of these transformative projects and committed to partnering with Noront to develop innovative solutions that will bring long-term prosperity to the region.”

Today’s agreements mark another step toward a larger goal established by Noront to develop the Ring of Fire in true partnership with local First Nations, contractors, suppliers and the communities of northern Ontario, it said.

Noront previously signed agreements with Marten Falls First Nation and Aroland First Nation, which made both communities Noront shareholders, established ongoing working and communications protocols and created a dialogue regarding mutually beneficial economic development opportunities.

In consideration for entering the term sheet, Noront will issue Algoma 750,000 common shares and 750,000 warrants to purchase common shares, subject to approval from the TSX Venture Exchange.

Outotec offloads fabrication, manufacturing facilities in southern Africa

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Outotec has agreed to sell its fabrication and manufacturing businesses in South Africa and Mozambique to SPS Holdings Company, a firm which will then become Outotec’s agent to the ferrochrome industry in that part of the world.

The transaction is expected to become effective on June 1, but both parties have agreed not to disclose the acquisition price, Outotec said.

“The South African facility, in Brits, serves primarily ferrochrome plants and the Mozambique facility provides services and spare parts for the aluminium industry,” the company said. The combined annual sales have been approximately €15 million ($16.6 million). The majority of the 255 employees are working in fabrication and manufacturing and will transfer as old employees, Outotec added.

“As of June 1, SPS Holdings will be providing fabrication services, site works and local supplies for Outotec’s customers acting as the company’s agent to the South Africa ferrochrome industry,” the company said.

Tomas Hakala, Head of Outotec’s Service Business, said: “SPS Holdings, with its local operations, is well-positioned to run these businesses.

“Outotec’s service strategy is to offer expert services for our proprietary products, process and technologies. Together with SPS Holdings our joint aim is to use our local experience to build and grow a service-oriented business to help customers to get the best return for their investments.”