OREANDA-NEWS. The Agreement was signed in Harbin during the opening ceremony of the First Russia-China EXPO. The document was signed by Sergey Shurygin, Director General of JSC PIMCU, and Ma Mingliang, Director General of BTIEC.

“This project is an important part of our production diversification program. Its implementation will enable us to create new jobs in Krasnokamensk, as well as to provide PIMCU and facilities of the future mining and metallurgical cluster with necessary volumes of low-cost cement. Anticipated capacity of the cement factory is 1,000 tons per day; it is expected that quite a large volume of products will be supplied to consumers in the Trans-Baikal Territory, since there is no such factory in the region,” said Sergey Shurygin.

Partnership negotiations between ARMZ Uranium Holding Co. and BTIEC commenced last year. In May, a delegation of Chinese partners visited Krasnokamensk, examined the fields, selected a site for construction of the factory and familiarized themselves with the infrastructure. The enterprise’s resource base will comprise the Ust-Borzinskoye limestone deposit and the Urtuiskoye open-pit coal mine, owned by PIMCU.

“There is no doubt that a tentative feasibility study for the factory construction will be fulfilled within the established timeframe, before September 30, 2014. We assign a high priority to this cooperation and are interested in the quickest possible implementation of this project. According to my estimation, production costs of Krasnokamensk cement will be 40–50% less than even those at our production facilities in China. PIMCU has at its disposal high-quality limestone and proprietary low-cost coal. Also, there is pyrite cinder, as well as other possible additives required for cement production. Availability of infrastructure, including low-cost electric energy, minimizes investment expenditures,” noted Ma Mingliang.

In particular, the Agreement foresees elaboration of the Cement Factory Master Plan, preparation for certification of necessary equipment and development of the construction project schedule. A special attention will be paid to observance of environmental requirements, occupational safety and labor protection. For example, as early as the feasibility study stage, wind directions will be taken into consideration to finally select a construction site. Furthermore, an anticipated schedule of rotating shifts and their duration will be developed for the enterprise.

“This cement factory will become the second facility of the mining and metallurgical cluster in the south-east of the Trans-Baikal Territory. The regional Government is interested in creating there an advanced economic growth area and grants to investors fiscal reliefs and other preferences. Alongside, the infrastructure development is underway. The availability of proprietary low-cost cement is an attractive factor that facilitates furthering the cluster. Presumably, I will be in charge of this project supervision on behalf of the regional Government, and we will exert every effort to fulfill it in due time,” highlighted Alexey Sidorov, Head of the Trans-Baikal Territory delegation at the First Russia-China EXPO, Minister of Economic Development of the Trans-Baikal Territory.

Completion of the project implementation is scheduled for summer of 2016.