Nickel Asia Corporation said that the cost of building the Philippines' second nickel processing plant, due to be completed in 2013, will rise 22% to USD 1.59 billion, swelled by higher material prices and changes in specifications.
Nickel Asia Corporation said that the cost estimate for the Taganito plant in southern Surigao del Norte province was now USD 290 million higher, following a project review by Japanese partners Sumitomo Metal Mining Co Limited and Mitsui & Co Limited.
Nickel Asia, which has a 22.5% stake in the project, said that the additional cost includes USD 150 million related to damages sustained by the plant facility in attack by Maoist rebels in October 2011.
It added that "While there was a temporary pause in the project due to the October 2011 incident, subsequent work on the plant is progressing smoothly."
The plant will have a capacity of 30,000 tonnes of contained nickel and 2,600 tonnes of contained cobalt per year. It will use the high pressure acid leaching process that enables the recovery of nickel and cobalt from low grade nickel ore.
The country's first nickel processing plant, the Coral Bay HPAL facility in southwestern Palawan province, has a capacity of 24,000 tonnes of contained nickel per year. Commissioned in 2005, the plant is 54% owned by Sumitomo and 18% by Mitsui, while Nickel Asia has a 6% stake.