TORONTO (miningweekly.com) – Toronto-listed Orbite Aluminae has shipped the first commercial samples of high-purity alumina (HPA) produced at its HPA plant in Cap-Chat, Quebec.
The company last week said it had started shipping the metal with a minimum purity of 4N (99.99%), to several customers in Europe, Asia and North America.
Orbite had already received more than 25 confirmed orders for HPA samples ranging from 4N to 5N purity from clients worldwide.
“This is a very important milestone for Orbite as it signals our official entry into the global high-purity alumina market,” Orbite CEO Richard Boudreault said in a statement.
Customer HPA samples of 4N purity or greater were expected to continue to ship during the first half of the year, as material of the appropriate purity and characteristics become available to satisfy customer orders. Sample sizes typically range from 1 kg to 100 kg.
Customers were expected to test their respective HPA samples, a process which can take several months and could entail ordering additional samples, before submitting purchase orders for commercial supply.
The company said the global market for HPA had typically been for a 4N product but was shifting towards higher purities of 4N5 and 5N over the next few years. This shift is driven in part by the phasing out of incandescent lights over the next few years throughout most major world markets, which is increasing the demand for light-emitting diode lights, containing substrates manufactured with HPA.