Mitsubishi Materials, Dowa Mining in Copper Smelting Tie-Up

Tokyo, Dec. 6 (Jiji Press)–Major nonferrous metal companies Mitsubishi Materials Corp. and Dowa Mining Co. said Tuesday they have agreed to team up in copper smelting and related operations.

Under the deal, Onahama Smelting and Refining Co., a Mitsubishi Materials subsidiary in which Dowa Mining also has an equity stake, will spend about 8.1 billion yen to launch a new furnace at its Onahama plant to lift the smelter’s annual production capacity to 200,000 tons in late 2007 from the current 160,000 tons.

After the planned production increase, Dowa Mining will additionally outsource to the Onahama plant and a Mitsubishi Materials plant a combined 40,000 tons of copper smelting a year.

Mitsubishi Materials will outsource to the Dowa Mining group its post-smelting process of collecting such metals as lead, gold and silver from smelting residual.

The Dowa Mining group is constructing a new furnace in the northern Japan prefecture of Akita specifically designed for the recycling process. The new furnace is set to start operating in 2007.END