Inco to temporarily shut down Sorowako processing plant
Friday, August 3 2007 - 02:02 AM WIB
Publicly nickel miner PT International Nickel Indonesia Tbk (Inco) will temporarily shut down one of its processing plants in Sorowoko, South Sulawesi in the second semester of this year to allow the installation of a bag house system in two of its furnaces, Kontan reported Friday.
The shutdown will not, however, affect the company’s production target.
Speaking to reporters in Jakarta, Thursday, Inco’s president director Arif Siregar said that the plant would be temporarily closed to allow the company to install a bag house system in the furnace No 1 in the third quarter of this year and in the furnace No.2 in the fourth quarter this year.
He said that the installation of the bag house system would reduce the dirt emission below the tolerable limit set by the government. A similar equipment had been installed in furnace No 3 and No 4 in 2005.
Arif said that the installation of the equipment would affect the company's target to produce between 72,575 tons and 74,843 tons of nickel in matte this year. “There is nothing to worry about because the shutdown has been planned,” he added.
The company’s processing plant in Sorowoko has the capacity to process 150 million tons of nickel ore a year.
According to Arif, the installation of the bag house system would cost the company about US$16 million. “The cost has been included in the company's capital expenditure of about $146 million set aside for this year,” he added.
In the first semester, Inco’s nickel production rose by 18 percent to 39,100 tons. (*)