Mr Patrick Buffet president director general of Eramet in France has explained about the business results for 2008 and also expressed his forecast of the company's activities in 2009.

He said that "The Weda Bay nickel project, being currently developed in Indonesia, is scheduled to apply to AL process, which is Atmospheric Leaching with Sulfuric Acid Treatment. Eramet has been researching into this process from 10 years ago in order to utilize laterite ore in New Caledonia. This AL process will be possible to utilize for nickel refining in Indonesia and has differed from H PAL process or Ammonia Leaching process, both of which are hydrometallurgical processes for nickel refining."

He added that "Eramet has been aiming to stabilize prices of manganese ores but the current prices have had a considerable fall from that of USD 16 per Mn 1% CIF prevailed in October to December quarter of 2008. Eramet has thought that a stable price of manganese ore has to be higher than USD 5 per Mn 1% CIF, depending on new manganese projects to be planned hereafter. The demand for manganese ore from China has been currently increasing and, accordingly, prices of manganese ores are in the direction to rise on worldwide scale."

Mr Buffet said that "The agreement to develop nickel deposits in Prony and Creek Pernod of New Caledonia has been signed and these deposits represent one of the largest nickel oxide resources in the world. Eramet has held the project to produce 60,000 tonnes per annum of nickel from these deposits on a long run and the hydrometallurgical technology developed by Eramet's research centre in Trappes will be utilized for this nickel project. In combination with the Weda Bay nickel project in Indonesia, Eramet will be able to expand substantially a scale of nickel production."

(Sourced from TEX Report Limited)