Oman antimony roaster signs feedstock supply pact

STRATEGIC VENTURE: Development of Mideast’s first antimony processing plant makes headway in SOHAR Port and Freezone

Strategic & Precious Metals Processing (SPMP), an Oman based minerals processing company behind the development of a major antimony roaster at SOHAR Port and Freezone, says it has signed an agreement with Luxembourg-headquartered Traxys Europe SA to supply feedstock for the plant.

Under the multi-year agreement, Traxys — a physical commodity trader and merchant in the metals and natural resources sectors — will supply antimony and antimony gold concentrates for the roaster. The agreement provides SPMP with access to the global expertise provided by Traxys on minor metal concentrate sourcing and supply chain logistics management.

Commenting on the agreement, Emin Eyi, CEO of SPMP, said: “This is an important milestone for SPMP, the global reach and expertise of Traxys brings considerable value and further de-risking to our project. Work has already commenced with the Traxys team in identifying and approaching major suppliers of antimony and antimony gold concentrates at a time when some 50 per cent of China’s antimony smelters are shuttered pending environmental concerns.

The roaster project is planned to produce over 20,000 tonnes of antimony products per annum and recover over associated gold.

The plant is one of the first in decades to be built to international standards for emissions, is highly automated and benefits from the natural advantages of its location 50,000 ounces of on Oman, namely proximity to a major port and trade routes to Asia, low energy costs, good local power and infrastructure, modern waste handling facilities and a zero tax zero duty environment.

Antimony is a critical metal used in a wide variety of industrial, electronics and plastics sectors. Supply has been dominated by China for a number of decades.

Major economies of Europe, US and Japan are almost entirely import dependent on China for this critical and scarce element. The SPMP vision is to provide a clean, sustainable and environmentally compliant source of antimony to global consumers.

Alan Docter, Chairman of Traxys, commented “We are pleased to partner with SPMP and look forward to contributing our deep industry experience to this strategically placed and timed project.”

Privately held Traxys primarily focuses on the marketing and sourcing of base metals and concentrates, minor and alloying metals, industrial minerals and chemicals, and materials for steel mills and foundries.

Its logistics, marketing, distribution, supply chain management and trading activities are conducted by over 300 employees, in over 20 offices worldwide, and its annual turnover is in excess of $6 billion.