Once extracted from the quarries, ores are transported to the Kwatebala plant via the primary crusher for slightly larger ore blocks, and then the semi-autogenous mill.
At the plant, they go through several processing stages, including leaching and counter-current decantation.
The residues are sent for neutralization, and the tailings are transferred to tailings ponds after neutralization.
At the cobalt plant, cobalt hydroxide is obtained after a series of purification phases.
Due to the characteristic moisture of cobalt hydroxide, which presents a challenge, TFM initiated the construction of dryers at the end of 2018 to significantly reduce the moisture content, reducing it from 70% to 15%.
In 2024, the plant extension project materialized, resulting in an increase in the total daily feed to the plant from 15,000 to 30,000 tons, an increase of 15,000 tons. The goal is to increase production. As a result, the following were established:
