Boliden Expands Electronic Scrap Recycling Capacity

Boliden, a large European-based metals company, has announced plans to triple its electronic scrap recycling capacity at one of its smelters to around 120,000 metric tons per year.

To accomplish this, the company will be investing 1.3 billion Swedish kroners (US$178 million) at its Kaldo furnace at its Rönnskär copper smelter in Stockholm, Sweden. The investment will allow the company to increase its electronic scrap capacity from 45,000 metric tons per year to around 120,000 metric tons per year.

Implementation on the expansion is slated to begin this year. The company expects to have the new furnace on line by the end of next year or early 2012.

“A growing part of the raw materials used in metal production in future will come from scrap products. The expansion takes advantage of our extensive experience of processing electronic scrap and will enhance Rönnskär’s commercial potential in a growing market,” says Roger Sundqvist, general manager at Rönnskär.

In deciding to invest at the smelter, the company notes that margins in the use of electronic scrap are much higher and the volatility much lower than using traditional copper for its raw material intake.

Boliden is involved in exploration, mining, smelting and recycling. The company’s main metals are zinc and copper.