Smelting told to team up with Antam for anode slime refinery project

The Ministry of Energy and Mineral Resources has asked PT Smelting, which operates the only copper smelter in the country, to team up with state-controlled mining firm PT Aneka Tambang Tbk (Antam) to develop a domestic refinery for anode slime, a by-product of copper processing and refining process, Investor Daily reported on Thursday.

The paper quoted Director General of Mineral and Coal R. Sukhyar as saying that the construction of the refinery is crucial following the government?s policy to ban the export of mineral ores. He said that anode slime is also banned from being exported.

Following a meeting with PT Smelting, Sukhyar said that while Smelting does not have the competency to build the refinery, Antam has as the company is currently in the process of constructing a 500?ton per annum capacity of anode slime refinery in East Jakarta, which is expected to start operation in October of this year.

He said that a new plan is being prepared to build a 2,000-ton capacity anode slime refinery. The project will be developed by Antam and PT Smelting in Gresik, East Java, near the latter?s smelter. Construction is expected to start next year.

Sukhyar said that PT Smelting produces about 2,000 tons of anode slime per year, all of which are exported to Japan. (*)