JOHANNESBURG (miningweekly.com) – Assmang’s Sakura ferroalloys smelter, in Sarawak, Malaysia, was officially opened on Wednesday.
Sakura is a low-cost ferromanganese producer and has successfully commissioned two 81 MVA furnaces, within the approved budget of $328-million.
Both furnaces, currently producing high-carbon ferromanganese, are flexible as they are designed to produce either high-carbon ferromanganese or silicomanganese.
Furnace 1 was successfully commissioned in April 2016, followed by Furnace 2 in September, with the first shipment of high-carbon ferromanganese having been exported in June 2016.
“Sakura [was built] in Malaysia largely owing to the availability of hydroelectric power. Many environmental considerations have been incorporated into this greenfield project’s production process to reduce its impact on the surrounding areas,” Assmang, which is jointly controlled by Assore and African Rainbow Minerals, said in a statement on Wednesday.