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INTERVIEWS |
 Russian metals giant Norilsk Nickel hopes to get licenses to develop the Yelanskoye and Yolkinskoye nickel deposits, which are the last largest nickel in Europe by metal content, as they contain the company’s core metals, Yuri Filippov, the company’s first deputy CEO for production, said in an interview to PRIME. Industry experts estimate investments in development of the deposits in 100 billion rubles.
“To my mind, Norilsk Nickel can not lose the tender, if the documents submitted to the tender commission would be considered unbiased and fair,” he said.
Russia’s Federal Mineral Resources Agency plans to hold the tenders on May 15, with results to be announced on May 20.
The deadline to apply for participation in the auction expired on April 20. Only three companies have bid for the tender, but only two were admitted, including Norilsk Nickel and Ural Mining and Metallurgical Company (UMMC). Russian Copper Company (RMK) had not been allowed to proceed to the next stage of the tender.
Filippov said that the main value of the deposits, located in the Voronezh Region, is nickel, adding that its share in ore currently stands at over 80%, while cobalt and precious metals accounts for 15%. “And all these metals are core for Norilsk Nickel,” he said.
Filippov also said that the major competitor of Norilsk Nickel, UMMC, had never processed sulphide copper and nickel ores and never produced primary nickel and cobalt.
“The core profile of UMMC in the non-ferrous metallurgy is the production of copper and copper products, as well as zinc and lead. UMMC has no necessary competence and “know-how” in this field of industry,” Filippov said.
Filippov said that creating special facilities to process the metals would be unprofitable for UMMC.
“It will cost about $3 billion in investments due to the limited production volume, compared with Norilsk Nickel’s existing plants,” he said adding that they (UMMC) had other operations at the deposits. “The production of copper-nickel flotation concentrate and its further sale to a third part is more realistic, contradicts the terms of the tender,” he added.
Answering a question regarding future infrastructure in the Voronezh Region, Filippov said that Norilsk Nickel did not plan build new facilities.
“We are interested in the Voronezh Region deposit from the point of view of adding additional metallurgy capacities for the Kola Mining Company in the Murmansk Region. The reserves of unmined high grade ore are nearly exhausted, while currently mined ore is of a low grade and does not provide a full load of existing capacities. A further increase in mining would be economically unviable due to the depth and complexity of the ore’s structure. The development of the Voronezh Region’s deposits will allow for providing the Kola Mining Company with high grade ore loading capacities,” he said.
Filippov said that ore from Voronezh Region deposits is the equivalent of what is produced by the Kola Mining Company.
“The Voronezh Region’s deposits simultaneously contain nickel, copper, cobalt, and platinum group metals (PGM – all from minerals that are the base of all types of ores of deposits on the Taimyr and Kola peninsulas,” he said.
UMMC refused to comment.
The starting price for the Yolkinskoye deposit was set at 73.4 million rubles. The deposit’s P2 resources amount to 54,600 tonnes of copper, 393,800 tonnes of nickel and 14,400 tonnes of cobalt.
The starting price for the Yelanskoye deposit was set at 96.3 million rubles, with a participation fee of 90,000 rubles. The deposit’s P1 resources amount to 5,600 tonnes of copper, 54,100 tonnes of nickel, and 1,700 tonnes of cobalt; the deposit’s P2 resources amount to 40,300 tonnes of copper, 351,600 tonnes of nickel, and 10,300 tonnes of cobalt.
End
23.04.2012 23:50
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