August 06,
Ferrexpo, the Ukraine-based Iron ore miner, plans to double ore output by 2013 to meet rising demand in China and Europe.
Ferrexpo has so far produced 4.9m tonnes of refined Iron ore pelletsso, an increase of 18 per cent, from its sole mine in Poltava, Central Ukraine. That was largely driven by China, although European demand is recovering as Steel mills look to replenish their low stocks.
Expansion beginning in the second half is set to be focused on the Yeristovo mine, where the company has completed a definitive feasibility study and hopes to move to production within two years.
Ferrexpo has 20bn tonnes of Iron ore reserves and currently it only mine 30m tonnes, which is used to produce 9.5m tonnes of pellets, so there is capacity to increase output.
The big issue for Ferrexpo is a serious lack of visibility within their end markets on pricing – producers are in the dark as to what their direct competitors are achieving price-wise with steel mills.
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