JOHANNESBURG (miningweekly.com) – ASX-listed Forge Group has been awarded a A$70-million contract by lead contractor Tecnicas Reunidas for construction of the technical ammonium nitrate production facility at the Burrup project near Karratha, in Western Australia.
Construction of the processing facility would start in September and was due for completion in May 2015, and would entail structural, mechanical, electrical and instrumentation installation by Forge Group Construction, which would employ a workforce of up to 230 on site.
Mining services provider Orica has joined forces with mineral fertiliser producer Yara and explorer Apache to develop the $800-million ammonium nitrate plant. The project will take ammonia, produced from natural gas at the nearby Yara Pilbara Fertilisers plant, to produce a base ingredient for explosives, used by the region’s iron-ore industry and other mining operations.
Forge Group MD David Simpson said the company’s track record and expertise in industrial construction was an important determinant in it being awarded the contract.
“Importantly, as an industrial chemical project, the Burrup project further diversifies our revenue and earnings. We are actively pursuing opportunities that will give the group exposure to these growth markets,” he commented.
Simpson added that the company had an active project pipeline of tender opportunities in the US, Australia, Asia and Africa, for engineering, procurement, construction and asset management works.