Winter Park, Florida 27/06/2016 - Sherritt International Corp has started a 14 day shutdown at the Ambatovy nickel/cobalt mine in Madagascar as it brings forward maintenance activity originally scheduled for August.
"A blockage in the tailings pipe was the main driver in the decision to accelerate the shutdown, as the process of emptying the pipe and addressing the associated causes and repairs requires a full re-start," the company said in a statement.
Sherritt owns 40 percent of the project, while Sumitomo and a consortium led by Korea Resources each have 27.5-percent stakes. The project's engineering contractor, SNC-Lavalin, holds the remaining five percent.
Ambatovy second quarter production is now expected to be approximately 9,100 tonnes finished nickel and 660 tonnes finished cobalt (100 percent basis), which is down from 11,105 tonnes of nickel and 913 tonnes of cobalt in the first quarter.
"Production in the [second] quarter is affected by the shutdown and by a continuation of equipment reliability issues that affected first quarter production. Full year production guidance will be reviewed and updated as part of second quarter reporting," the company said.
In its first quarter production report, Sherritt said it will produce between 81,500-84,500 tonnes tonnes of nickel (100 percent basis) including 48,000-50,000 tonnes at Ambatovy and 33,500-34,500 tonnes at its Moa joint venture in Cuba.