Boliden, the Swedish mining and smelting company, plans to invest a total of €700m to expand its Boliden Odda smelter in Norway to nearly double its zinc production.
With the expansion, Boliden Odda expects to increase its annual zinc production capacity to 350,000 tons from the current 200,000 tons. As part of the expansion, Boliden Odda plans to build several new facilities, including a new baking furnace, a new sulfuric acid plant and a new prison cell. In addition, the works include the expansion and modernization of the leaching and purification plant, as well as the expansion of the casting and wharf infrastructure.
A significant portion of the total investment is expected to take place in 2022 and 2023, according to the company. "This is one of the largest investments in Boliden's history," said Mikael Staffas, President and CEO of Boliden. "By increasing the production of zinc with the highest climate performance, while improving resource efficiency and productivity, we are setting new standards for the sustainability and cost-effectiveness of zinc smelting." Odda will have fossil-free electricity, Boliden said, and waste will be stored in the cave using a unique and sustainable technology.
With all environmental permits in place, the expansion is expected to enable the smelter to extract bimetallic lead, gold and silver, as well as zinc. The expansion, which will increase the digitalization and automation of operations, is expected to be completed by the end of 2024.
