Slow progress at Noranda’s magnesium plant

Already well behind schedule, Noranda has again postponed startup at its Magnola magnesium plant, near Asbestos in Quebec’s Eastern townships.

Commercial production is now expected to commence in the first quarter of 2003. Originally, startup was planned for the first quarter of 2001, and this was later pushed back to the fourth quarter of 2002.

The latest delay is the result of an electrolyte leak in one cell, which was shut down for repairs. The operation continues to suffer blockages in the magnesium chloride transport system, and Noranda reports damage to some electrodes in the electrolysis cells.

Currently, 23 of Magnola’s 24 electrolytic cells are running at 70% of capacity.

Noranda has lowered Magnola’s 2002 magnesium production target to 25,000 tonnes from 55,000 tonnes.

During the recent third quarter, Magnola produced 7,168 tonnes magnesium. In all of 2001, the troubled operation cranked out 9,339 tonnes of pure magnesium and magnesium alloy.

The project is expected to cost $1.1 billion in total, whereas the original estimate was $733 million.

Noranda owns 80% of Magnola, with the remainder held by the Quebec government’s Socit gnrale de financement du Qubec.