Altech Chemicals (ASX:ATC) has secured land at the Tanjung Langsat Industrial Complex in Johor, Malaysia, for its proposed high purity alumina (HPA) plant.
The option to lease for the 4 hectare site was secured with a non-refundable deposit to Johor Corporation.
This is initially reserved until 30 December 2015 and upon execution of an option to lease, will be leased for a period of thirty years, with an option to renew.
Operating costs for the plant are expected to be about 40% lower than an equivalent plant in Australia, placing it in the bottom quartile of the cost curve for established HPA producers.
Last week, the company signed a milestone agreement appointing Mitsubishi Corporation (TYO:8058) as the exclusive seller and distributor of its final high purity alumina (HPA) product to the Japanese market.
Tanjung Langsat
Altech previously selected Tanjung Langsat, located 40 kilometres southeast of the city of Johor Bahru, as the site for its proposed HPA plant based on significant economic and developmental benefits.
These include the ready availability of required consumables such as hydrochloric acid, limestone, quicklime, power and natural gas – all at highly competitive prices.
The availability of skilled labour, proximity to an international container sea-port and international airports (Johor Bahru and Singapore) and the various investment incentives on offer were additional benefits.
Feedstock for the HPA plant will be sourced from the company’s wholly-owned aluminous clay (kaolin) deposit at Meckering, Western Australian.
Approximately 18,565 tonnes per annum of beneficiated kaolin will be containerised and transported via road about 153 kilometres to the port of Fremantle, Western Australia.
The containers will be shipped from Fremantle to the port of Tanjung Pelepas in Johor and then transported about 90 kilometres by road to Tanjung Langsat.
Shipping of the company’s final HPA product from Tanjung Langsat to nearby Asian markets will also provide both cost and delivery time advantages.
It also has the potential to enhance the Malaysian region’s HPA value-add chain, as sapphire glass producers such as Rubicon Technology currently operate a facility in Malaysia.
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