Vedanta Limited on Sunday informed that the company is doubling its annual zinc production capacity to 500,000 tonnes at its South Africa zinc operations, with an investment of nearly USD 600 million via Vedanta Zinc International (VZI).
South African President Cyril Ramaphosa and Vedanta Ltd Director Priya Agarwal-Hebbar inaugurated the expanded capacity at Gamsberg in the Northern Cape province, the company said in a press release on October 18.
Vedanta Ltd shares will remain in focus on Monday following the announcement.
Vedanta targets 3 million tonnes of annual zinc production
Vedanta aims to achieve an annual zinc production capacity of 3 million tonnes across its operations in India and South Africa.
Of this, its subsidiary Hindustan Zinc Ltd is targeting 2 million tonnes annually, while Vedanta Zinc International aims to contribute 1 million tonnes.
The Gamsberg expansion is expected to strengthen the company’s ability to cater to rising global demand for zinc.
Gamsberg project among major mining investments
Located in South Africa’s Northern Cape province, Gamsberg is Vedanta Zinc International’s flagship zinc mine and has one of the world’s significant zinc deposits.
The investment is part of Vedanta’s commitment of 21 billion South African rand, or nearly $1.5 billion, announced at the South Africa Investment Conference in 2018.
The company said the expansion marks one of the largest mining investments in South Africa this decade.
Ramaphosa welcomed the investment and said the government would work with Vedanta and other partners to address the requirements of the project. He also welcomed the company’s ambition to establish zinc smelting capacity in the Northern Cape.
Rising zinc demand supports expansion
Zinc is widely used in industrial and infrastructure applications. Through galvanisation, it protects steel from corrosion and extends its service life.
The metal is used across construction, automotive, manufacturing and other industries. Vedanta said the expansion would strengthen its ability to serve growing global demand for zinc.
The company sees the combined operations of Hindustan Zinc and Vedanta Zinc International as important to its long-term production ambitions.
Hindustan Zinc sees a 5% increase in mined metal production
Hindustan Zinc Ltd (HZL) earlier reported a 5 per cent year-on-year increase in mined metal production to 2.71 lakh tonnes for the quarter ended September 30. Its refined zinc production also rose 5 per cent to 2.12 lakh tonnes and refined lead production increased 14 per cent to 51,000 tonnes, according to a regulatory filing dated October 3.
HZL’s refined metal production stood at 264 kt, up 7 per cent on a year-on-year basis, driven by additional capacity unlocked through debottlenecking projects at Chanderiya and Dariba and the 160 ktpa roaster at Debari.
The company said the output was also in line with plant availability.
Silver production stood at 173 metric tonnes during the quarter, up 20 per cent and in line with the production plan.
Wind power generation increased 17 per cent to 155 million units, in line with wind velocity and weather patterns.
Hindustan Zinc reported record first-half mined metal production for the sixth consecutive year at 539 kt, up 3 per cent over the year-ago period.
First-half refined metal production stood at 524 kt, an increase of 6 per cent year-on-year. The company said this was its highest-ever first-half refined metal production.
Silver production for the first half of FY27 increased 10 per cent to 321 metric tonnes, while wind power generation rose 8 per cent to 288 million units.