Almot Maqolo, Staff Writer 
GWERU-based ferrochrome processor Zimbabwe Alloys (ZimAlloys) says it requires US$16.3 million to restart two of its biggest furnaces.
Managing director, Deric Dube, recently told The Financial Gazette that the funds would be raised through a phased approach.
“At the moment, we don’t have virgin ferroalloy production; the ferroalloy that we trade and produce at the moment is coming from our metal recovery plant,” he said.
“However, we are in the process of restarting a number of smelting units within our complex and that’s the M1 furnace, which is our smallest furnace and then possibly the brand-new virgin furnace 13,5 megavolt amperes furnace, as well as the A3 furnace, which is our biggest unit in the refinery. So, what we need to do is probably phase our growth; for us to restart the big furnace, we will need probably another US$6,9 million in capital expenditure and then a bit more, about US$3,2 million in operation expenditure that will restart the A3 furnace,” he said, adding that the company could self-finance the rest of the project once the first two furnaces went online. Dube said ferrochrome prices had been firm and were expected to remain high as the global economy continues to recover from a Covid-19-induced slump.
“There is a strong housing demand and growth of cities in that part of the world and some of the disruptions in commodity movement that were brought about by the Ukraine-Russia conflict have meant that gap needs to be plugged from somewhere and obviously that unfortunate situation has then strengthened the pricing of a lot of commodities,” he said.
ZimAlloys, controlled by the diversified mining group Kuvimba Mining House (KMH), has three high-carbon ferrochrome furnaces but also has a complex for low-carbon ferrochrome and ferro manganese production.
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