$870m ilmenite beneficiation project enters construction phase at Richards Bay IDZ

JOHANNESBURG (miningweekly.com) – The construction of the first phase of the Nyanza Light Metals plant to advance ilmenite up the value curve in the form of titanium dioxide (TiO2) pigment has begun at the Richards Bay Industrial Development Zone (RBIDZ) in South Africa’s KwaZulu-Natal province. Nyanza CEO Donovan Chimhandamba confirmed this to Mining Weekly on Thursday, June 25 at the Coatings for Africa show in the Sandton Convention Centre, where Nyanza is exhibiting. (Also watch attached Creamer Media video interview.) Foundation piling works are in progress and the targeted date for the start of TiO2 production is the end of 2029. The plant will process ilmenite produced from the mining of heavy mineral sands to produce the many-times-higher-priced TiO2 pigment for industrial coatings, architectural paints, paper and plastics. A multi-phase industrial platform linking titanium beneficiation with downstream battery materials production is part of the overall design. Nyanza has an engineering, procurement, construction and operations management contract with East China Engineering Science and Technology Company, a subsidiary of China National Chemical Engineering Group Company. Full article: https://www.miningweekly.com/article/...