QNI to examine nickel, cobalt plants

QNI to examine nickel, cobalt plants

SYDNEY (Reuter): QNI Ltd said its South Africa's Gencor Ltd
and Indonesia's state-owned PT Aneka Tambang were looking at
developing an integrated nickel and cobalt processing facility in
Indonesia and Australia.

QNI Managing Director Wyn Davies said in a statement the study
would be funded equally by QNI and Gencor and was expected to
take nine months.

He said the strategic alliance between the three parties would
draw on their collective strengths, including:

* Aneka Tambang's mining and operating experience and
ownership of lateritic deposits in Indonesia,

* Gencor's developing technology for nickel processing and
operating experience in Indonesia through its Billiton
subsidiaries, and,

* QNI's unique ammonia leach technology developed at its
Yabulu Refinery in Australia.

Gencor has developed a technique for using bacteria to process
usually difficult ore bodies containing gold, copper and nickel.

The scoping study would look at:

* developing a number of underdeveloped lateritic nickel ore
deposits in Indonesia,

* constructing a nickel smelter in Indonesia using Gencor
technology,

* constructing an ammonia leach plant in Indonesia to process
ore to carbonate stage, and,

* expanding the product section of the Yabulu Refinery in
Australia to take the additional carbonate feed.

The scoping study would allow the three companies to decide on
plans to proceed with a pre-feasibility study on the joint
project.