Name of the Project
POX-2 project.

Location
The POX-2 project will be situated adjacent to the current Amursk pressure oxidation (POX) facility, Khabarovsk Territory of Russia.

Project Owner/s
Polymetal International.

Project Description
The facility will process concentrates from Polymetal’s mines at Kyzyl, Nezhda, Mayskoye and Voro, and will significantly increase the value of the company’s refractory reserve base, comprising about 55% of total ore reserves.

The project will include a new hydro­metal­lurgical area (POX proper), carbon-in-leach and intensive cyanidation areas, an oxygen plant, an upgrade to the existing dry tailings facility, reverse osmosis water treatment facility, and several smaller infrastructural facilities such as warehouses and maintenance areas. POX-2 is designed for processing double refractory concentrates, which contain micron gold particles encapsulated in sulphides (pyrites and arsenic pyrites) together with high concentrations of organic carbon. High carbon-content drives high absorption-activity (preg-robbing) and dictates the use of high-temperature (240 ºC) pressure oxidation, compared with medium-temperature (200 ºC) oxidation used at the existing Amursk POX facility.

Completed metallurgical tests on Kyzyl and Mayskoye high-carbon concentrates have confirmed the recovery rate of 96%.

The plant’s design throughput capacity is 250 000 t/y to 300 000 t/y of concentrate, depending on the levels of sulphur content. Maximum sulphide sulphur processing capacity is 48 000 t/y. This will complement the 200 000 t/y of concentrate and 30 000 t/y of sulphur capacity of the existing Amursk POX facility. The POX-2 facility will use a titanium-lined steel autoclave operating at 240 ºC and pressure of 43 bar.

Potential Job Creation
POX-2 will create more than 400 permanent jobs. The Polymetal project team will include more than 30 professionals who actively participated in the successful execution of the original POX and POX debottlenecking projects in 2013 and 2018 respectively.

Net Present Value/Internal Rate of Return
The project has a net present value, at a 10% discount rate, of $112-million and an internal rate of return of 14%.

Capital Expenditure
Preproduction capital expenditures are estimated at $431-million.

Planned Start/End Date
First production was scheduled for the third quarter of 2023, but this has been delayed.

Latest Developments
POX-2 is expected to experience three- to six-month slippage from its original schedule mostly owing to logistical challenges.

It has further delayed all early-stage projects by one year.

Key Contracts, Suppliers and Consultants
Hatch (basic engineering, detailed engineering, POX procurement support and the supply of custom-made equipment for high-pressure and acidic processing areas).

Contact Details for Project Information
Polymetal International investor relations Eugenia Onuschenko, tel +44 20 7016 9506 or email ir@polymetalinternational.com.