Key Points
- Khwelamet’s acquisition of Metalloys aims to revive manganese production.
- Menar plans to restart furnaces for 500,000 tons of ferromanganese.
- The project will create jobs and strengthen South Africa’s export potential.
The Competition Tribunal has given its approval for Khwelamet, a joint venture between Menar and Ntiso, to acquire Metalloys, a prominent ferromanganese company in Meyerton, Gauteng.
Khwelamet’s acquisition of Metalloys fuels South Africa’s manganese revival
Since March 2020, Metalloys, which can produce one million tons of manganese alloy annually, has been undergoing maintenance and care.
Khwelamet’s acquisition comes after Samancor Manganese, a division of South32 (60%) and Anglo American (40%) left the business.
The tribunal’s permission is contingent upon employment, rehabilitation, and remediation requirements. Following the transaction, Khwelamet will take full control of Metalloys, managing its medium- and high-carbon ferromanganese smelting, refining, and processing activities.
Mining, energy, infrastructure, real estate, financial services, telecommunications, agriculture, and professional services are just a few of the industries in which Khwelamet is currently operating.
The planned resumption of Metalloys’ operations is thought to be significantly influenced by the company’s experience in producing manganese ore, especially through Menar.
Metalloys was a major force in the manganese alloy industry in South Africa prior to its closure. Since then, the site has concentrated on remediation activities, such as selling slag resources for concrete and road base, upholding regulatory compliance, and keeping vital equipment operational to enable a possible restart.
A supply of one million tons of manganese ore from South African mines is needed to restart at least two of Metalloys’ four furnaces, which could produce 500,000 tons of ferromanganese annually.
“Power availability concerns were a major factor in the decision to shut down operations in 2020. However, now that Eskom has excess electricity, there is a renewed chance to produce ferroalloy, and Metalloys is a strong contender, Bayoğlu told Mining Weekly and Engineering News.
Energy plan includes gas, solar, and Eskom baseload support
In order to guarantee energy stability for Metalloys’ operations, he also revealed plans to restart the site’s gas-fired power plant in conjunction with waste-to-electricity, solar power generation, and baseload power from Eskom.
According to Bayoğlu, “if the numbers add up, we hope to restart operations within the next 12 months.” The project may help create jobs in the Meyerton and Vereeniging districts.
The resurgence of Metalloys might change South Africa’s place in the global manganese value chain, as the nation produces one-third of the world’s manganese ore but only supplies 5% of the world’s ferromanganese.
With its East Manganese project in the Northern Cape, where an underground manganese mine is currently in early stages of development, Menar began diversifying into manganese production in 2021.
