[miningmx.com] — South Africa Metals Equity Ltd. plans to invest $300m to build a plant for producing pig iron, a company official said on Thursday.
Chairperson Donovan Chimhandambi said a feasibility study for the project was expected to be completed by the second quarter of 2011 before capital raising for the project began.
“The company will produce about 500 000 tonnes per annum of pig iron,” Chimhandambi told Reuters. Production of the steel-making ingredient is expected to start at the end of 2013.
He said construction of the plant, which will treat materials from mining waste dumps to produce iron pigment and vanadium, is expected to last two years from 2011.
Chimhandambi said Bank of America Merrill Lynchhad been appointed as lead in capital raising.
“It will take us about six months to raise capital for the project,” he said.
South Africa Metals Equity, based in Brits in North West province, has mainly black South African investors as shareholders.
ArcelorMittal’s South African unit, dominates steel production in Africa’s largest economy.
