Bobwins: BWLRF re ZINC and INDIUM
Worldwide Indium production is primarily a byproduct of ZINC processing according to what I've read. Here's an interesting article on the subject ... at $1000 per kilo, hopefully Breakwater will be cashing in ...
HONG KONG, Feb 2 (Reuters) - The government of Zhuzhou city in China's southern Hunan province has shut down five indium plants for a month because of power shortages and pollution concerns, trade sources said on Wednesday.
They said about 10 indium plants in nearby Xiangtan city had also been shut down for the same reasons.
The total capacity of the closed indium plants was not immediately available. The two cities are near the capital city of Changsha.
The Zhuzhou government had ordered all indium plants in the city to close between Jan. 27 and Feb. 28, the sources said.
Chinese indium suppliers say they expect prices to smash new records this year on strong demand from Asian flat-screen TV and computer manufacturers. The closures may fuel the price further.
Zhuzhou and Xiangtan are two main indium producing cities in China, which supplies about 40 percent of world demand.
Traders estimated China produced more than 200 tonnes of primary indium last year, mostly as a by-product of zinc.
Traders in Europe said spot indium prices were hovering around $1,000 a kg, against $875-$925 late last year.
"The market is being pushed on the supply side at the moment, not on the demand side. This (closure) underlines the supply deficiency, and the price will go up," a European end-user said.
"We're getting offers above $1,000/kg on the table now, and after the festivities (Lunar New Year) when the Japanese buyers come back to try and secure new long-term contracts, they will find that it is a different game." he added.
Production at Zhuzhou Smelter, China's number two indium producer aiming to make 20 tonnes this year, remained normal, a company official said.
"We do not need to shut down...we have a special facility to control emissions," he said.
But power shortages have forced Zhuzhou's listed Zhuye Torch Metals Co. Ltd. <600961.SS> to temporarily lower zinc production rates by a third.
The sources said Zhuzhou and Xiangtan were suffering from a drought which was worsening water quality of the already polluted Xiang River which runs through the two cities and Changsha. The river also is the source of drinking water for local people.
Waste from indium plants to the river was threatening drinking water for more than 100,000 people, a report from a newspaper in Zhuzhou said.
The simple technology of indium production and high prices of the metal had attracted unauthorised operations in Zhuzhou, the report said.
Trade sources said the indium plants in Zhuzhou and Xiangtan bought slag from Chinese zinc smelters to produce indium, a soft, silvery-white metal, causing serious pollution problems to the cities and Changsha.
