Nyrstar Australia invests in new Product Recycling Facility to further reduce Lead in Air Concentrations in Port Pirie

Nyrstar Australia announced today that it will invest in the construction of a new $23 million Product Recycling Facility at its Port Pirie plant that will significantly reduce lead in air concentrations measured in the local community.

The Product Recycling Facility will build upon a range of plant and process improvements that Nyrstar Australia has made in recent years to address the different factors contributing to lead in air concentrations.

The South Australian Government will contribute $7 million towards the 6,850 m2 facility, enabling the commencement of construction to be brought forward to early 2022.

The Product Recycling Facility will be sealed and under negative air pressure, allowing intermediate materials used in the production process to be stored and mixed in an enclosed facility, thereby reducing the potential for losses of lead-bearing dust to the atmosphere from the plant.

The Facility will be constructed adjacent to the existing processing plants, which has the added benefit of significantly reducing the handling and transport of materials in the open air.

Nyrstar Vice President Australian Operations, Dale Webb, said that construction of the new Facility will enable a major improvement to site operations and is expected to reduce the concentrations of lead in air in the community by up to 25% compared to monitoring levels recorded in December 2020.

“Our process for storing, mixing and transporting minerals around the site will be improved fundamentally and will work together with other improvements already in place to deliver a sustained reduction in lead in air in our local community,” he said.

“The investment that Nyrstar Australia is making will act to improve both the environmental and operational performance of our Port Pirie plant, and we welcome the State Government’s support for this important project.

“Nyrstar Australia and its many talented people working in Port Pirie will continue to focus on how we can continue to improve our operations to reduce lead in air concentrations and complement the Targeted Lead Abatement Program (TLAP) and actions of the State Government, Port Pirie Regional Council and people of Port Pirie to reduce lead levels within the local community.”

Construction of the facility is expected to be completed in the second half of 2024.

ENDS.

For more information please contact:
Chandran Vigneswaran
M: +61 (0) 467 775 055

About Nyrstar Australia
Nyrstar is a global multi-metals business, with operations located in Europe, the United States of America and Australia employing over 4,000 people. In July 2019, Nyrstar’s operating business became majority owned by Trafigura, one of the world’s leading independent commodity trading companies.

Nyrstar Australia is a national multi-metals processing and manufacturing business, operating in Port Pirie and Hobart for over 100 years to produce lead, silver, zinc, and many other materials - including critical minerals - that are essential for the manufacture of products used by everyone, every day.

Today Nyrstar Australia employs over 1,300 people across processing plants in Port Pirie and Hobart that operate as two interlinked sites and play a critical role in increasing the value of the metals and minerals obtained from resources sourced from across Australia and around the world.