PT Inco says to boost nickel production to 90,000 tonnes within next 3-5 yrs

Indonesia-listed nickel miner PT International Nickel Indonesia Tbk (PT Inco) pledged to produce 90,000 tonnes of nickel in matte within the next 3-5 years, from currently 73,000 tonnes, the company?s official told reported on Wednesday.

The company?s director, Bernardus Irmanto, said that to boost its output, it plans to expand its brown-field mine through production optimization plan (POP), optimalization of nickel processing plant in its Soroako plant, which includes furnace upgrade that will start at the end of this year.

In April 2011, PT Inco announced that it had signed two separate memorandums of understanding (MoU) with Chinese steel companies Baosteel Resources Co. Ltd. and PT Pan China International (PCI) to conclude final feasibility studies to build a new nickel processing facility in Morowali regency, Central Sulawesi .

Irmanto said the study was expected to be completed within the next 3-5 months. ?We will announce the detailed plan after we get the study result,? he said. (denny)