Sweden. Boliden AB
| Date of agreement: | 23 Feb 2022 |
|---|---|
| Country: | Sweden |
| Customer: | Boliden AB |
| Amount in EUR: | EUR 100 million |
| Maturity: | 8 years |
| NACE sector / loan type: | Mining and quarrying |
Project
NIB provides the loan to finance the expansion and upgrade of the smelter Boliden Odda in Vestland County, Norway.
The investment will allow for an increase in the annual production capacity for zinc products to 350,000 tonnes from current 200,000 tonnes. The investment is scheduled to be completed by the end of 2024.
The investment includes several new facilities at Boliden Odda, with a new roaster, a new sulphuric acid plant, expansion and modernization of the leaching and the purification plant, a new cellhouse, and expansion of the foundry and quay infrastructure. The investments also include technique so that Boliden Odda can extract valuable metals such as lead, gold, and silver and re-work old deposits of waste products.
The smelter is supplied with renewable energy, and waste deposition will take place in mountain caverns using a sustainable technology. The increased production capacity together with improved energy efficiency and the use of fossil-free electricity means a further reduction to the carbon dioxide intensity.
Boliden is a Swedish mining and smelting company that mainly produces copper, zinc, nickel, lead, gold and silver. The company is headquartered in Stockholm and has operations in Sweden, Finland, Norway and Ireland. Boliden employs approximately 6,100 people.
Fulfilment of NIB's mandate
Productivity
The upgrade and expansion of the Boliden Odda smelter is one of the largest investments in the company’s history. Increasing the capacity of the smelter allows for more efficient metal recovery from inputs and old residues in current deposits. Significant economies of scale, digitalisation and automation provide the prerequisites for making the facility the most productive zinc smelter in the world. The company has a significant impact on the local economy and the expansion will add more value to the economic activities of the region.
Environment
Despite an almost doubling of the production of zinc products the discharges to water and emissions to air will remain approximately at the same as today’s production level.
Sustainability summary
This is a project with a potentially extensive environmental and/or social impact (category A, read more)
The main environmental aspects for the expansion include discharges to water and emissions to air of metals like zinc, lead, cadmium, and mercury. Other environmental aspects are increased volumes of waste to be deposited in tailor-made rock caverns, noise, and visual impact from high structures.
