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Molybdenum Leaching Project at Altonorte receives environmental approvals
Antofagasta, 9 May 2008
Xstrata Copper's North Chile Division announces the receipt of environmental approvals from the Antofagasta Region environmental authority Corema to construct a molybdenum leaching facility at its Altonorte metallurgical facility.
Altonorte is evaluating the construction of a Brenda molybdenum leaching plant and the refurbishment of a second molybdenum roaster that is currently idle.
The leaching process would reduce the copper impurities contained in molybdenum concentrates, allowing them to be processed by roasting at Altonorte to obtain a commercial product that meets the technical specifications required by the market.
These two projects have the combined capacity to more than double molybdenum concentrate processing capacity at Altonorte from 12,000 tonnes per annum to 28,000 tonnes per annum for an estimated investment of US$40 million.
Altonorte expects to start construction of the molybdenum expansion project in the second half of 2008, subject to the completion of positive feasibility studies and Xstrata Copper board approval. Commercial production would commence in the second half of 2009.
"This environmental approval is another step towards the North Chile Division's strategy of transforming Altonorte into a world class metallurgical facility with the highest environmental standards that offers a wide diversity of products and services," said North Chile Division Chief Operating Officer (COO) Jon Evans.
Ends
Xstrata contacts
Emily Russell
T: +56 2 478 2204
M: +56 9 8528 1650
Email: erussell@xstratacopper.cl
Luis Lino
T: +56 55 416107
M: +56 9 9699 8107
Email: llino@xstratacopper.cl
Juan Pablo Schaeffer
T: +56 2 4782272
C: +56 9 949 5245
Email: jschaeffer@xstratacopper.cl
Notes to editors
ABOUT NORTH CHILE DIVISION
Xstrata Copper's North Chile Division is based out of the city of Antofagasta and manages the nearby Altonorte custom metallurgical facility and the Lomas Bayas mining operation, 120 kilometres east of the city of Antofagasta. It also administers Xstrata Copper's 44% share in the Collahuasi mine in northern Chile's Region I.
ABOUT XSTRATA COPPER
Headquartered in Brisbane, Xstrata Copper is one of the commodity business units within the major global diversified mining group Xstrata plc. Its operations and projects span eight countries: Australia, Argentina, Chile, Peru, Canada, the USA, the Philippines and Papua New Guinea. Its operations are administered by five separate divisions, based close to the mining operations, namely the North Queensland, Minera Alumbrera, North Chile, Southern Peru and Canada divisions. It also has a recycling business (Xstrata Recycling) with plants in the United States and offices in Canada and Asia.
Xstrata Copper is the fourth largest global copper producer with annual attributable production capacity of over one million tonnes.
ABOUT XSTRATA
Xstrata is a global diversified mining group, listed on the London and Swiss Stock Exchanges, with its headquarters in Zug, Switzerland. Xstrata’s businesses maintain a meaningful position in seven major international commodity markets: copper, coking coal, thermal coal, ferrochrome, nickel, vanadium and zinc, with additional exposures to platinum group metals, gold, cobalt, lead and silver, recycling facilities and a suite of global technology products, many of which are industry leaders. The Group's operations and projects span 18 countries: Argentina, Australia, Brazil, Canada, Chile, Colombia, the Dominican Republic, Germany, New Caledonia, Norway, Papua New Guinea, Peru, the Philippines, South Africa, Spain, Tanzania, the USA and the UK. Xstrata employs approximately 56,000 people, including contractors.