Nickel smelter in C. Sulawesi to start operation 2015

A nickel pig iron smelter currently being developed in Morowali, Central Sulawesi, is expected to start production in April of 2015, Bisnis Indonesia reported on Friday.

The 300,000 wet metric tons per year smelter is being developed along with a 2x65 MW coal-fired power plant, said Alexander Barus, Vice President Director of mining firm PT Bintang Delapan Mineral, which is teaming up with China?s Tsingshan Group through a joint venture firm PT Sulawesi Investment Mining in the developing the project. Total investment for the smelter and power plant is estimated at US$632 million.

Alexander said that the project will be expanded to develop a second stage 600,000-wet metric ton per year smelter, which is targeted to start commissioning in December 2015. Total investment along with a 2x150 MW power plant is estimated $1.1 billion.

Raw material for the smelters will come from Bintang Delapan mine, which has nickel ore reserves of 80 million tons.

In the future, the project will be further expanded downstream, to develop two stainless steel production facilities, each with a capacity of 1 million tons per year. Construction of the first stainless steel plant is scheduled to start in mid of next year, with a target to start operation in 2017. Construction of the second facility will begin early 2016, the paper said. (*)