Tag Archives: Harjavalta

The Copper Mark welcomes moly, nickel and zinc producers to assurance framework

The Copper Mark, the assurance framework to promote responsible practices and demonstrate the contribution of the copper, molybdenum, nickel and zinc industries to the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals, has welcomed its first six non-copper participants seeking assurance against its framework.

The addition of these new sites follows the launch of the Copper Mark’s pilot implementation scheme for molybdenum, nickel and zinc producers last October. This expansion reflects the deepening collaboration between the Copper Mark, the International Molybdenum Association (IMOA), the Nickel Institute (NI) and the International Zinc Association (IZA) to promote sustainable and responsible production and sourcing practices within and across these critical transition mineral supply chains, it said.

These sites include:

  • Boliden Mineral AB – Kokkola (copper and zinc);
  • Boliden Mineral AB – Harjavalta (nickel);
  • Freeport-McMoRan Inc – Climax (molybdenum);
  • Freeport-McMoRan Inc – Henderson (molybdenum);
  • Molymet – Molymet Belgium NV (molybdenum); and
  • Molymet – Complejo IndustrialMolynor S.A. (molybdenum).

The pilot scheme will run to July 2023 and includes the independent third-party site assessment of the participating sites against the Copper Mark Responsible Production Criteria, the Risk Readiness Assessment. The site may receive the Molybdenum Mark, Nickel Mark and/or Zinc Mark if the independent assessment confirms that all criteria are fully or partially met. A full launch for producers of molybdenum, nickel, and zinc is planned for later in 2023.

The six new sites join the Copper Mark in addition to 16 existing copper-producing participants that also produce at least one of the additional metals. This shows the strong overlap between the producers of copper, molybdenum, nickel and zinc and the efficiencies gained through the multi-metal partnership, according to The Copper Mark.

Michèle Brülhart, Executive Director of the Copper Mark, said: “We are excited to be welcoming the first six molybdenum, nickel and zinc sites to participate in our assurance framework. It is vital that these resources, critical for supporting the low-carbon global transition, are produced and sourced in ways that meet increasing government and end-user demands for responsible business. Our collaboration with IMOA, NI, and IZA will help to further increase the percentage of responsibly produced copper, nickel, molybdenum, and zinc available to society.”

Eva Model, Secretary-General of IMOA, said: “We are delighted to see such a positive response to the Molybdenum Mark pilot from our IMOA members. We are proud that our collaboration with Copper Mark on the Molybdenum Mark will help our members increase the percentage of responsibly sourced molybdenum available in society, as well as enable them to meet market demands and increasing regulatory requirements relating to responsible sourcing.”

Andrew Green, Executive Director of IZA, said: “We celebrate these first six participants for representing the industry’s commitment to providing independent, transparent, and credible assurance for all stakeholders. This collaborative milestone recognizes that we all share accountability for enabling responsible business and sustainable development.”

Hudson Bates, President of NI, said: “We are pleased with the steady progress of the pilot scheme and that the Copper Mark framework is being adopted by molybdenum, nickel and zinc producers. The Nickel Institute is delighted to have been part of the development of the Nickel Mark. It is a valuable tool for the nickel value chain and other stakeholders to ensure that nickel produced sustainably can play its vital role in the energy transition and value chain initiatives promoting responsibility.”

Metso Outotec SMD mills to boost output at Boliden’s Harjavalta concentrator

Boliden Harjavalta has chosen Metso Outotec’s SMD grinding mills to improve the capacity of its slag concentrator, in Finland, the mining OEM says.

Boliden Harjavalta produces high-quality metals for European industrial customers, churning out 120,000 t of copper and 26,000 t of nickel in 2019.

The purpose of the slag concentrator is to recover copper from the slag produced in the copper smelter and to return it to the copper production cycle as high-quality slag concentrate, Metso Outotec said, with grinding being an essential part of the slag concentration process.

The raw materials of the Boliden Harjavalta smelter consist of concentrates and recycled metals, according to Boliden, with the company’s two mines in Finland – Kylylahti and Kevitsa – providing the smelter with concentrates. Concentrates are also purchased from external mines, Boliden says.

The order has been booked in Metso Minerals’ June quarter 2020 orders received.

Based on tests, Metso SMD (stirred media detritor, specialised for fine grinding applications) was chosen as the grinding technology, Metso Outotec said.

“Maintenance for the SMD is safe and cost-effective thanks to the simple mechanical structure of the mill and the smaller number of moving parts compared to traditional grinding mills,” the company explained.

Timo Sarvijärvi, Metso Outotec’s Head of Mining in the Nordics market area, said the company, at testing stage, noticed slag could be processed very efficiently using SMD technology.

“Now the slag concentrator can process larger amounts of material, without compromising the targets set for copper recovery,” Sarvijärvi said.