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Norilsk to increase nickel output in Finland
Tue Apr 8, 2008 8:41am EDT

MOSCOW, April 8 (Reuters) - Russian metals company Norilsk Nickel (GMKN.MM: Quote, Profile, Research) (NKELyq.L: Quote, Profile, Research) plans to increase the capacity of its Harjavalta refinery in Finland to 66,000 tonnes a year in 2009, a senior Norilsk official said on Tuesday.

"It's a tough target," Norilsk deputy chief executive for production Tav Morgan told a nickel conference.

But the target was feasible, he said, as Harjavalta was working above its capacity in some months and refining nickel in volumes exceeding an equivalent of 60,000 tonnes per year.

Norilsk previously set the target of raising production to 60,000 tonnes in 2008 from around 54,000 tonnes in 2007.

Norilsk acquired the Finnish refinery last year when it bought the nickel assets of U.S.-based OM Group (OMG.N: Quote, Profile, Research) for $409 million. It is now part of the company's international division created after the separate acquisition of Canada's LionOre Mining International.

Some of the concentrate treated at Harjavalta comes from mines in Australia formerly owned by LionOre.

Morgan said Norilsk was expanding nickel briquette production capacity at Harjavalta to 40,000 tonnes per year from 36,000.

Norilsk planned to invest 9.5 million euros ($14.98 million) in the expansion of the refinery in 2008 and 2009, he said.

Morgan said Norilsk was also investing 64 million euros over two years in a decalcination facility, which will be able to treat intermediate products containing 33,000 tonnes of nickel from Finnish Talvivara Mining Co. (TALV.L: Quote, Profile, Research). Continued...

http://www.reuters.com/article/marketsNews/idINL0826105920080408?rpc=44