22 May 2013
Muscat: Oman's first ferrochrome smelter, a 50:50 joint venture between Muscat Overseas Group and India's Indsil group, will start trial operation in Sohar free zone next month.
The project, coming up at the Sohar free zone, will play an important role in boosting Oman's position in the global ferrochrome market, which is a key product used for manufacturing specialty stainless steel.
The first two smelters of Al Tamman Indsil Ferro Chrome, which is the first phase, will achieve its full capacity of 75,000 tonnes per annum within one-and-a-half to two months of starting trial run, a senior official of Al Tamman Indsil Ferro Chrome, told Times of Oman.
"The heating up of furnace will take time and that is why it takes one-and-a-half to two months to achieve full production capacity, which is around 6,000 tonnes per month," said Anindya Das, Financial Controller of Al Tamman Indsil Ferro Chrome. The company invested around $35 million for the first phase development.
The ferrochrome production capacity will be doubled to 150,000 tonnes per annum in the second phase by installing two additional furnaces, taking the total number of furnaces to four. "We expect the full capacity of 150,000 tonnes per annum to be achieved by mid-2014." The work on second phase, which will have an envisaged capital expenditure of $45-50 million, will start in the next two to three months. "We have completed engineering design and order for plant and equipment will be placed within two months," noted another source.
Vinod Narsiman, Managing Director of Indsil Hydro Power and Manganese, said the Oman joint venture may generate around $200 million revenue per annum, after completing the second phase. Plans are also afoot to produce 20,000 tonnes per annum of low carbon ferro, which will be done in a step-by-step manner probably in the second phase.
Al Tamman Indsil Ferro Chrome will export the entire ferrochrome production to international markets since there are no takers for the product in Oman. "We have received enquiries from several companies across the world." The global stainless steel industry is expected to grow at 8 per cent per annum.
The project allows stainless steel companies to set up their businesses in Sohar free zone, which will offer further investment opportunities in other related industries, manufacturing, logistics and various services. Oman has vast reserves of chrome ore and the country constitutes about 10 per cent of the global chrome ore trade.
However, Al Tamman is importing high grade chrome, especially from Turkey and South Africa, to mix with locally available chrome ore. Since the chrome ore feedstock available in Oman is of low and medium grade, the joint venture smelter has to mix Oman chrome with imported chrome in the ratio of 70:30.
Anindya Das also noted that the company will use Sohar port for all its exports, which are mostly in containers. However, its imports of coke and coal will be partly in bulk and partly in containers.
Apart from Al Tamman, three ferrochrome smelter projects are in different stages of planning, design and construction at Sohar free zone. The second ferrochrome project Metkore Alloys and Industries is building a 150,000 tpa-capacity ferrochrome smelter project within the free zone with an estimated cost of around $100 million.
Gulf Mining Materials, one of the largest chrome ore mining and exporting firms in Oman, has also signed dealto set up ferrochrome smelter at the free zone.
Further, Freezone Sohar is expected to sign a land lease agreement with a joint venture firm for building a ferrochrome smelter, which will be the fourth such project coming up in Sohar that will take the total envisaged capacity to approximately two million tonnes per annum. The proposed unit, which will have approximately 150,000tpa capacity, will have a capital expenditure in the region of $100 million to $150 million.
Muscat: Oman's first ferrochrome smelter, a 50:50 joint venture between Muscat Overseas Group and India's Indsil group, will start trial operation in Sohar free zone next month.
The project, coming up at the Sohar free zone, will play an important role in boosting Oman's position in the global ferrochrome market, which is a key product used for manufacturing specialty stainless steel.
The first two smelters of Al Tamman Indsil Ferro Chrome, which is the first phase, will achieve its full capacity of 75,000 tonnes per annum within one-and-a-half to two months of starting trial run, a senior official of Al Tamman Indsil Ferro Chrome, told Times of Oman.
"The heating up of furnace will take time and that is why it takes one-and-a-half to two months to achieve full production capacity, which is around 6,000 tonnes per month," said Anindya Das, Financial Controller of Al Tamman Indsil Ferro Chrome. The company invested around $35 million for the first phase development.
The ferrochrome production capacity will be doubled to 150,000 tonnes per annum in the second phase by installing two additional furnaces, taking the total number of furnaces to four. "We expect the full capacity of 150,000 tonnes per annum to be achieved by mid-2014." The work on second phase, which will have an envisaged capital expenditure of $45-50 million, will start in the next two to three months. "We have completed engineering design and order for plant and equipment will be placed within two months," noted another source.
Vinod Narsiman, Managing Director of Indsil Hydro Power and Manganese, said the Oman joint venture may generate around $200 million revenue per annum, after completing the second phase. Plans are also afoot to produce 20,000 tonnes per annum of low carbon ferro, which will be done in a step-by-step manner probably in the second phase.
Al Tamman Indsil Ferro Chrome will export the entire ferrochrome production to international markets since there are no takers for the product in Oman. "We have received enquiries from several companies across the world." The global stainless steel industry is expected to grow at 8 per cent per annum.
The project allows stainless steel companies to set up their businesses in Sohar free zone, which will offer further investment opportunities in other related industries, manufacturing, logistics and various services. Oman has vast reserves of chrome ore and the country constitutes about 10 per cent of the global chrome ore trade.
However, Al Tamman is importing high grade chrome, especially from Turkey and South Africa, to mix with locally available chrome ore. Since the chrome ore feedstock available in Oman is of low and medium grade, the joint venture smelter has to mix Oman chrome with imported chrome in the ratio of 70:30.
Anindya Das also noted that the company will use Sohar port for all its exports, which are mostly in containers. However, its imports of coke and coal will be partly in bulk and partly in containers.
Apart from Al Tamman, three ferrochrome smelter projects are in different stages of planning, design and construction at Sohar free zone. The second ferrochrome project Metkore Alloys and Industries is building a 150,000 tpa-capacity ferrochrome smelter project within the free zone with an estimated cost of around $100 million.
Gulf Mining Materials, one of the largest chrome ore mining and exporting firms in Oman, has also signed dealto set up ferrochrome smelter at the free zone.
Further, Freezone Sohar is expected to sign a land lease agreement with a joint venture firm for building a ferrochrome smelter, which will be the fourth such project coming up in Sohar that will take the total envisaged capacity to approximately two million tonnes per annum. The proposed unit, which will have approximately 150,000tpa capacity, will have a capital expenditure in the region of $100 million to $150 million.
© Times of Oman 2013
