Lonmin PLC (LSE: LMI) has identified the reason for the incident that caused the platinum producer to shut down the Number One furnace earlier this month, and expects the repairs and extra costs incurred as a result to run up to US$4 million.
An inspection of the Number One furnace has established that the source of the matte run-out was a water leak in one of the lower copper cooling waffle units above one of the matte tappe blocks. This unit is being replaced and a full investigation into the cause of the leak is underway.
Matte is expected to be tapped again at the Number One furnace within the previously estimated 30 days, during which time the vessel will be fully repaired, monitored and tested.
To make up for the outage, Lonmin’s Pyromet furnaces tapped matte on June 21 2009 and will remain in operation until September 2009.
As a result of utilising its additional smelting capacity, Lonmin expects to process the majority of the concentrate inventory built up ahead of the smelter during the Number One furnace shutdown before the end of the 2009 financial year. However, the shutdown will impact its ability to fully refine the remainder of this built up metal in process during that period.
As a consequence of the shutdown, it is estimated that at September 30 2009 there could be an increase in metal in process of up to 20,000 ounces of Platinum.http://www.proactiveinvestors.co.uk
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