- OM Holdings (OMH) has recommenced smelting and sinter ore production at its smelter plant in Qinzhou, China
- The company decided to suspend operations at the Qinzhou Plant in March 2020, due to the COVID-19 pandemic
- During the suspension, OM Holdings performed maintenance on one furnace and upgraded the other from 16.5 million volt-amperes (MVA) to 25.5 MVA
- The furnace which underwent maintenance is expected to recommence production during the first half of 2021
- OM Holdings is up 1.39 per cent and trading at 73 cents per share
OM Holdings (OMH) has recommenced smelting and sinter ore production at its smelter plant in Qinzhou, China.
In March of last year, the company decided to suspend all operations at the Qinzhou plant, in light of the COVID-19 pandemic. The decision to suspend operations has since been re-evaluated.
During the suspension period, OM Holdings was able to perform major maintenance on one of the furnaces at the plant. The company also upgraded the other furnace from 16.5 million volt-amperes (MVA) to 25.5 million volt-amperes.
After OM Holdings conducted a period of trial production, the company recommenced operations of the upgraded furnace and manganese ore sinter plant ontart January 31, 2021. The furnace which underwent maintenance is expected to res production during the first half of 2021.
The Qinzhou plant now has a closed furnace design which allows for the recycling of flue gases for sintering. When the upgrade and maintenance of the two furnace sets are complete, OM Holdings expects the Qinzhou plant to produce 80,000 to 95,000 tonnes of manganese alloys a year, as well as 300,000 tonnes of sintered ore a year.
In addition to improving production efficiency and increasing the plant’s total capacity, the furnace upgrades will also give the plant the flexibility of producing either silicomanganese or high carbon ferromanganese.
OM Holdings’ Executive Chairman, Low Ngee Tong, commented on the commission of the upgraded furnace at Qinzhou.
“As China remains the world’s largest producer and consumer of steel, this capacity upgrade of our Qinzhou plant will increase the company’s smelting capability and create more synergies with our manganese ore distribution activities in China,” he said.
OM Holdings is up 1.39 per cent, trading at 73 cents per share at 11:25 am AEDT.