OREANDA-NEWS. November 11, 2010. OJSC MMC Norilsk Nickel (“MMC Norilsk Nickel” or “Company”) announces the reopening of ore concentrator at the Company’s Nkomati mine in South Africa, reported the press-centre of Norilsk Nickel.

The concentrator that was put under reconstruction in July 2010 was put into operation ahead of schedule.

The capacity of the upgraded concentrator in terms of ore processing increased from 100ktpm to 250 ktpm.

Total rated capacity of both Nkomati concentrators reaches 7.5Mt of ore per year.

It is expected that in 2010 Nkomati mine will produce 12.3kt of Ni in concentrate and 6.4kt of copper in concentrate. 

Nkomati Project (SAR)
MMC Norilsk Nickel owns a 50% stake in Nkomati Nickel Mine (Nkomati), a JV with the South African company African Rainbow Minerals.

Nkomati deposit is a sulphide mineralization containing nickel, copper, cobalt and PMG.
Nkomati proven ore reserves amount to 159 Mt containing over 500 kt of nickel, 200kt of copper, and 150 tons of PMG.

Two types of ore were identified at Nkomati: relatively rich ore with nickel content 0.42% (73 Mt) and low-grade ore with nickel content 0.16% - 0.24% (86 Mt).