DUSHANBE, May 3, Asia-Plus  -- A tripartite memorandum of intentions on construction of two plants – on producing cryolite and aluminum fluoride – in Yovon was signed among Tajik Aluminum Company (TALCO), TALCO Management and China National Heavy Machinery Corporation (CNHMC) in Dushanbe on May 2.    

The sides agreed to conclude an agreement and launch construction of both plants in June this year, TALCO press service said, noting that the budget for construction of the plants will determined after submission of detailed feasibility studies.  

Construction of the plants is part of the Project for shifting TALCO to the use of domestic raw materials, Mr. Michael Vilberg Pedersen, Executive Director of SomonCapital for Corporate Finance & Business Development, said at the presentation ceremony.  

According to him, the main objective of the Project is to provide Tajik aluminum smelter with local alumina at the rate of 1 million tons a year. 

On the decision to launch the Project, Mr. Pedersen said that it is based on world market trends connected with rising alumina and international transportation prices         

According to him, the fact that Tajikistan has possible nepheline syenite reserves of nearly 12 billion tons, rising world’s requirements in aluminum and high transportation costs make the project very profitable.  TALCO annually spends more than $100 million on transportation of alumina alone, the executive director said.  

“Specialists expect world’s annual requirements in aluminum to increase from 34.4 million tons in 2006 to 79.6 million tons by 2030,” Mr. Pedersen said

The company Hatch, which presented the nepheline processing project, also intends to participate in the Project.    

According to Hatch experts’ estimates, Tajikistan is the only country, where this project could economically profitable.    

Tajik chemical-metallurgical corporation is planned to be established in the future.  It will group a number of enterprises, including the Yovon heat and power plant and Tajikkhimprom (the Yovon chemical plant).  Besides, it is also planned to build new cement for processing cryolite, alumina-producing plant, and a plant for processing anthracite at the Nazarayloq and Ravnov deposits.  The plants will also join the future corporation.