Jetzt gehts bald los mit Ruashi Phase 1. Das Werk Sable im Sambia ist nun bereit, Kupfer aus Ruashi zu verarbeiten, soll im Juli so weit sein.
Chibuluma sollte jetzt plangemäß auf volle Kapazität hochgefahren sein und 15.000t/Jahr produzieren können. Ruashi wird weitere 10.000 t beitragen, in der zweiten Phase ab 2008 dann 45.000t.
Metorex mines come on stream
Charlotte Mathews
Resources Editor
DIVERSIFIED metals miner Metorex has started to produce copper cathode at its newly commissioned Sable plant at Kabwe in Zambia as the $43m Ruashi copper and cobalt project in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) moves towards production.
The Sable plant would start to process copper and cobalt concentrate from Ruashi by July, as scheduled, CE Charles Needham said yesterday.
At present the Sable plant is processing copper that has been brought from elsewhere as part of the commissioning process to ensure the plant is in good working order to process from the Ruashi mine.
At Ruashi, a critical issue for the mine is adequate power supply. Metorex has now brought in a transformer, which is currently being installed, and erected power lines. It expects the mine will have power within the next two weeks.
As Metorex’s financial year-end is June, its report for the 2006 financial year will reflect only the relatively small proportion of copper cathode being processed at Kabwe. But the group has said previously it expects to produce about 10 000 metric tons of copper and 1000 tons of cobalt from Ruashi in the 2007 financial year.
Copper prices have soared to about $8420/metric ton for three-month delivery yesterday from about $2 000/ton two years ago on fears of supply shortfalls, but market analysts have questioned how long the boom can continue.
Needham said Metorex had put in place a small hedge 
on its copper production because when it did its feasibility study on the Ruashi project it had assumed copper prices of $2100/ton. With the price well above that, it wanted to be able to protect some of the cash flows from the project, especially as it has decided to fast-track the second phase of Ruashi.
Although there could be some further upside in the copper price, Needham said some analysts were predicting the price could come off fairly sharply but stabilise at a higher level than before, possibly about $3500 to $4000/ton, underpinned by Chinese and Indian demand. But new copper supply would come on stream in the next four to five years, particularly from projects in Zambia and the DRC.
Metorex is finalising the due diligence study on Ruashi’s second phase to secure project funding of $120m-$140m and bring it into production by January 2008 instead of 2010, as originally planned.
http://www.businessday.co.za/a…panies.aspx?ID=BD4A201886
