The new 12,000 tpy tin smelter controlled by Yunnan Tin Company and Singapore Tin Industries on Indonesia’s Bangka island is due to start commissioning at the weekend.
An STI official told Metal Bulletin that the plant will produce tin of minimum 99.85% purity, which will be shipped to STI’s Tuas works in Singapore for refining. The smelter, which has a fume furnace, will be able to recover tin from low-grade tin concentrate and slag.
The plant already has an operating permit and its owners expect to obtain an export licence by the end of the year. STI’s refinery is believed to have been idled for much of this year as a result of the restrictions on Indonesian crude tin exports since last October
