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The Koniambo Nicky mine, with its political, economic and social history, closed its doors in New Caledonia on August 31, 2024. The complex had been discussed in the late 1960s, but it took time to come to fruition. And will keep the heart of the Far North beating for a decade.
The adventure ended on August 31 of this year, in what all Caledonians simply and affectionately call the “Northern Factory”. Now a few souls will be enough to keep the complex in good condition for a possible restart. If Glencore finds a buyer. The Anglo-Swedish shareholder withdrew. He is not the first.
International partners have achieved success with SMSP over the decades, from project to mill. Since its inception, South Pacific Mining has supported Koniambo Nickel in the service of northern development and rebalancing.
Returning nine dates later, the epic story of an industrial complex that closed its doors with the bitter taste of unfinished business.
The date was symbolic. Nothing concrete happened, but General Charles de Gaulle promised during his visit to New Caledonia to authorize the construction of a second nickel ore processing plant. Since 1910, only SLN had mined and processed Caledonian green gold in the region.
After SMSP entered the Northern Province (1990), the project reached a major milestone in 1998 after developing its primary ore mining and export activities.yes In February, the Bessi Agreement was signed. This “mining prerequisite” determined the principles for the exchange of the Konyabo block and the Poum deposit. SLN will hand over the first to SMSP and take back the second.
On April 29, SMSP signed an agreement in Noumea with Canadian mining giant Falconbridge: the company that will manage the future factory will be 51% owned by the Northern Province company and 49% by the Canadian multinational. The project can start. The investment is expected to be 120 billion CFA francs, to be paid by foreign investors.
On March 6, the foundation stone of the future complex was laid. It will be located in the town of Vau, a few kilometers from the northern capital of Cones. The then Minister of Overseas Territories, François Barouin, was also present. He then announced, according to the magazine Landmines : “This event symbolizes all our hopes, it marks the beginning of a new era for the northern province, it is the source of expectations for economic and social development, and it will bear fruit.”
The project has been tested… especially by death, In a helicopter crash in 2000composed of seven people, including SMSP’s CEO Raphaël Pidjot and the company’s other three managers. A drama that propelled André Dang to the leadership of the company.
Another test was uncertainty about Eaglebridge’s reliability. SMSP was eventually acquired by Swiss multinational Xstrata, changing partners but retaining the terms of the agreement.
The plant, whose size has been reassessed by Xstrata at more than 410 billion francs, is now taking shape in a more visible way. After three years of work, the first modules have arrived in Vavuto. Huge “components” from the plant, made in China and India. On September 5, the first four of a total of 17 arrived: they range in height from 20 to 34 meters, weigh a total of 8,500 tons, and have taken two years and 8 million hours of work to make.
Seven years after the first stone was laid, it was time for the first metal casting. It came out on April 10. The first technical casting was then Nine days after the first official pour, This marked the success of the Northern Factory project in front of the camera. Only one production line was put into operation at that time.
The complex was officially inaugurated in November, when the second production line was put into operation. But also after technical setbacks delayed the full commissioning of the plant. The then President of the Republic, François Hollande, attended the meeting. The goal for this year: 14,000 tons of nickel production, gradually increasing to 36,000 tons.
But on December 26, the hopes of hundreds of employees were dashed by considerable technical problems. Oven 1 is leaking, 500 tons of ferronickel escaped. After investigation, a design problem was discovered and both ovens were rebuilt one after the other.
The complex is only three years old but is facing the consequences of the nickel crisis, with prices at rock-bottom levels, and has technical deficiencies. The layoff plan has been implemented To ensure the survival of the enterprise and to ensure that the financial control of shareholder Glencore was maintained, the company absorbed Xstrata in 2013. At that time, KNS’s debt reached 1644 billion francs.
On December 15, Furnace No. 2 finally produced the first batch of castables. And rekindled the hope of sustainable development of the metallurgical industry in the Northern Province. But there was no effect. Two years later, the results were disastrous. : In the past five years, only 23,700 tons of nickel have been produced, and the debt has reached 127.6 billion francs.
After years of technological setbacks, Glencore has thrown in the towel. On February 12, the closure of the complex and the withdrawal of the Anglo-Swedish shareholders were announced. Glencore wanted to exit and took six months to find a buyer. In vain. Even though KNS continued discussions with several international organizations in the context of the crisis that began on May 13.
At the end of July, Collective dismissal procedure 1,200 KNS employees were employed. After August 31, only 50 soldiers were left to protect the now-vanished site.
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