MINEX Forum

Tag: European market

  • Metinvest’s Northern Mining Boosts Production with Second Roasting Machine

    Metinvest’s Northern Mining Boosts Production with Second Roasting Machine

    Metinvest Group’s Northern Mining and Processing Plant (Northern Mining) has launched a second roasting machine to meet increased demand from European partners, according to Metinvest.Media. Now, both LURGI 552 A and LURGI 552 B are operational, enhancing pellet production.

    The decision was preceded by extensive preparations and repairs. Last autumn, both units underwent comprehensive maintenance, with LURGI 552 B receiving quarterly repairs and an equipment inspection to boost reliability. LURGI 552 A also had similar improvements, including an overhaul of the rotary intake system to ensure efficient product shipment.

    To fulfill European contracts on time, the company decided to operate both machines simultaneously. This required additional workforce efforts, with employees at Pelletizing Shop No. 2 (PSM-2) working weekends and night shifts. The launch process took a full week, involving detailed inspections of all mechanisms and equipment.

    Currently, both machines are operating at a capacity of 460-463 tonnes of pellets per hour, ensuring timely deliveriesand stable exports to European customers.

    “The market sets its own rules, and we must maintain the company’s reputation and competitive edge. This brings new challenges for Northern Mining’s teams, especially at the Central Processing Plant-2, where specialists will need to periodically operate the second roasting machine to meet production goals. However, our employees are rising to the challenge, demonstrating dedication and responsibility. More production means higher revenue, increased tax contributions, and more funds for wartime needs,” said Dmytro Malykh, Director of Production and Planning at Metinvest’s Mining Division.

    Earlier, GMK Center reported that 2024 marked a turning point for Northern Mining due to the reopening of Odesa ports, which enabled the resumption of iron ore exports by sea. This development helped stabilize production and increase capacity. Additionally, operations at the Gannivsky open pit resumed during the summer, reaching nearly full capacity by the end of the year.

  • Vulcan fires up European lithium extraction plant

    Vulcan fires up European lithium extraction plant

    Vulcan Energy Resources has fired up its lithium extraction optimisation plant (LEOP) in Germany’s Upper Rhine Valley – a moment the company describes as a “significant milestone”.

    The budding carbon-neutral lithium developer is nudging closer to being the first company in Europe to produce the sought-after lithium hydroxide concentrate – crucial in the manufacturing of lithium-ion batteries – for the European market.

    Management has today revealed it has begun the commissioning phase for its LEOP and it is is expected to run until October, when the first bubbling-hot brine will be introduced into the plant for the lithium extraction process to begin.

    The newly-constructed LEOP is a ramped-up version of Vulcan’s pilot plant that has successfully produced lithium chloride from its producing well sites for the past two and half years.

    To extract lithium from brines, Vulcan is employing the adsorption-type direct lithium extraction (A-DLE) method, which has the added benefits of lower operating costs, greater time efficiency and a lower carbon footprint than legacy industry methods of lithium production.

    In the extraction process, the company will use its proprietary sorbent “VULSORB®”, which it has demonstrated to have a higher performance and lower water consumption for lithium extraction when compared with other commercially-available sorbents.

    From the LEOP, the lithium chloride will be refined to lithium hydroxide at Vulcan’s downstream central lithium electrolyser optimisation plant (CLEOP) in Frankfurt- Höchst and packaged up for further testing by notable offtake partners including Stellantis, Volkswagen, Renault, Umicore and LG Energy Solution.

    The commencement of the commissioning of our LEOP facility represents a significant milestone for us, as well as the entire European battery industry. By 2030, Europe is likely to face a significant lithium shortage, which could have serious implications for the European battery and automotive industries if domestic supplies are not realised. Vulcan is gearing up to be the first to produce lithium from Europe, for Europe, but also to be the first company worldwide to produce carbon-neutral lithium. The start of the commissioning of our LEOP facility is a key step toward the implementation of Phase One of our Zero Carbon Lithium Project, and in enabling a secure and independent European supply chain for lithium.

    Vulcan Energy Resources managing director and chief executive officer Cris Moreno

    With the company’s sights set firmly on a 2025 production target, it is also stepping up to help solve Europe’s looming lithium supply shortfall, with production forecast to supply up to 24,000 tonnes per annum of lithium hydroxide monohydrate.

    Located in the Upper Rhine Valley that extends across France, Germany and Switzerland, Vulcan has its foot on a 300km “graben” system that contains a sedimentary-hosted geothermal lithium reservoir that hosts 26.6 million tonnes of lithium carbonate equivalent – the biggest lithium resource in the European Union.

    Pioneering a carbon-free future, the company lays claim to the world’s first integrated renewable energy lithium extraction and lithium hydroxide project with net-zero greenhouse gas emissions, with the co-production of renewable geothermal energy on a mass scale.

    As Europe sweats through one of its hottest summers on record, discussions around climate change continue to be front and centre as the subcontinent steers towards its lofty 2050 carbon-neutral goals. With the transition to a global electric mobile fleet in full swing, Vulcan is neatly positioned to meet the unprecedented demand for the critical battery metal with its net-carbon neutral lithium.