New refinery in Sines to create 150 direct jobs

ACM – Alchemy & Critical Metals to build antimony refinery

State-owned ACM – Alchemy & Critical Metals intends to build an antimony refinery in the Sines Industrial and Logistics Zone (ZILS), with the project expected to create 150 direct jobs, the company has announced.

In a statement, Aicep Global Parques revealed that on June15, it signed a contract with the company to reserve a plot of land in Zone 1 of ZILS, with a total area of 131,000 square metres (equivalent to around 13 football pitches), for the construction of the industrial facility.

“ACM is dedicated to developing industrial capacity for the refining of critical metals, with its inaugural project being the construction of an antimony refinery at ZILS,” the company stated, adding that the facility is scheduled to come on stream in 2030.

The company specified that the project is expected to create around 150 highly skilled direct jobs and approximately 300 indirect jobs, linked to the value chain, logistics, services and suppliers.

According to Aicep Global Parques, which kept the planned investment confidential, the surface rights to be established will have a 30-year term, renewable, ensuring “the necessary conditions for the development and consolidation of the investment”.

“The refinery is designed for an annual capacity of 10,000 tonnes of metallic antimony, of which 7,500 tonnes correspond to primary production and 2,500 tonnes result from recycling processes,” it emphasised.

The company managing ZILS noted that the ACM project “envisages a site area of approximately five hectares, including industrial buildings, technical and logistics areas, car parks and green spaces”.

“The estimated construction volume amounts to around 80,000 cubic metres, with buildings up to 15 metres high and specialised technical infrastructure, such as industrial chimneys and a cooling tower,” it pointed out.

Noting that the future facility was developed right from the design phase, in accordance with Best Available Techniques (BAT), Aicep Global Parques emphasises that the project incorporates “high standards of environmental performance and safety”.

“Containment systems and retention basins are planned to prevent spills, as well as advanced gas treatment solutions, including bag filters and gas scrubbers, designed to significantly reduce atmospheric emissions,” the company explained.

According to ZILS’s management company, the industrial process also provides for the recovery of sulphur dioxide by converting it into sulphate or sulphuric acid, thereby preventing the release of free sulphur into the atmosphere.

“Systems for the capture, stabilisation and treatment of hazardous impurities, notably arsenic, will also be implemented, ensuring their management by licensed operators or their inertisation in safe matrices,” they emphasised.

Among other planned measures, the future refinery will have its own Industrial Wastewater Treatment Plant (ETARI), which will use “processes involving the precipitation of heavy metals, neutralisation and clarification, prior to discharge in accordance with environmental licences”.

Aicep Global Parques explained that antimony, included on the European Union’s list of critical raw materials, is a metal considered essential to sectors such as energy, the technology industry, semiconductors, mobility and defence.

Currently, its production and refining are “heavily concentrated in a few markets”, and the export restrictions introduced in recent years have highlighted the vulnerability of European supply chains, causing market tensions and rising prices.

As the above text has already indicated, antimony is toxic to humans, depending on how much exposure to the metal they have. A peer reviewed paper on the uses of antimony, explains “antimony toxicity can occur due to occupational exposure (…)  it may cause various disorders such as respiratory difficulties, antimony spots on the skin, pneumoconiosis (a group of lung diseases caused due to inhalation of certain dust), and gastrointestinal disorders, and it can even be carcinogenic.

“Antimony is naturally released into the environment by volcanic eruptions, windblown dust, sea sprat, biogenic sources, and forest fires. The average intake of antimony in ordinary cases is roughly 5 μg per day; therefore, for the general population, the toxicity threat is relatively low. Antimony toxicity usually occurs due to occupational exposure, therapeutic or domestic use.”

Source material: LUSA/ icliniq.com