New Delhi: As the global zinc market faces capacity constraints, Vedanta Resources has set a deadline of 2017-18 for completing the first phase of its Gamsberg project with USD 630 million investment.
"In zinc business, there is a capacity constraint coming in the next 3-5 years. We have committed USD 630 million for the phase 1 of the Gamsberg development project. This will be completed by 2017-2018," Vedanta Group's CEO Base Metals (Africa, Ireland and Australia) Kishore Kumar told PTI.
Vedanta Resources had bought the Gamsberg deposit and Skorpion mine in Namibia from Anglo American Plc as a part of a package of zinc assets in 2010 for about USD 1.3 billion.
The mine, which is the biggest known undeveloped zinc deposit in the world, has around 215 MT of zinc deposits. The company plans to develop 50 MT in the first phase, which is a little more than 25 per cent.
The project would also be a very big support to Vedanta's own businesses because some of its mines like Lisheen mine in Ireland would be closed down by 2015-2016 and the Skorpion mine in Namibia would also be shut in 2018-19.
"So our own capacity will be falling unless we bring Gamsberg into production. Once the first phase is over, we will come back to Board and take further approvals. But it is suffice to say that the expansion of this project will be one of the largest zinc deposits in the world," he said.
Vedanta Resources has a refinery in Namibia to extract Zinc from the oxide produced in Gamsberg. The company hopes to produce 2.5 lakh tonnes of metal. Some of them would get beneficiated and others will go as raw material to the global market.
"Our market is both domestic as well as international market. This project will produce high manganese zinc concentrate, which will go to Namibia for beneficiation and low manganese zinc concentrate which will go to the global market. Both put together we will produce 2.5 lakh tonnes of metal," Kumar said.
