Rio Tinto Fer et Titane invests CAD $43 million to restart furnace


20 mars 2018

Rio Tinto Fer et Titane (RTFT) has invested CAD $43 million to rebuild and restart a furnace at its reduction plant in Sorel-Tracy, Quebec.

Managing director of the Sorel-Tracy Metallurgical Complex, Guy Gaudreault said: "This investment is in line with our strategy to deliver value and meet demand from the market.

"The project included installing a new dust collection hood on the furnace equipment, to manage air quality for the community."

The furnace is one of nine at the Sorel-Tracy Metallurgical Complex and was decommissioned in 2013 due to challenging market conditions.

Guy Gaudreault stated: "Rebuilding the furnace has already delivered positive economic outcomes for the region. Around CAD $35 million in contracts have been awarded to local businesses, more than 80 per cent of our spend with suppliers for the project.

"Around 200 people have worked on rebuilding the furnace, ranging from operators to maintenance employees, engineers, procurement, finance specialists and construction workers.

"Many of the manufacturing workshops in Sorel-Tracy have taken part in the project, with construction completed few weeks ago."

RTFT has been transforming ore from Northern Quebec for more than 65 years and produces high-grade titanium dioxide feedstock, a product commonly used as a pigment to produce superior-quality white finishes. It also produces iron used in highly specialized manufacturing applications such aeronautics and wind turbines.