Itafos has recently provided an update on Itafos Conda’s reduced scope plant turnaround and announced a disruption in sulfuric acid supply to Itafos Conda from Rio Tinto’s Kennecott mine.
The company previously announced its decision to conduct a reduced scope plant turnaround at Itafos Conda during July 2020 as part of its risk mitigation measures during the COVID-19 pandemic. The reduced scope plant turnaround focused on inspection, testing and preventative maintenance of critical equipment. Itafos Conda completed the reduced scope plant turnaround with no environmental releases or reportable injuries.
The company has recently further announced that Itafos Conda has been experiencing a significant disruption in sulfuric acid supply from Rio Tinto’s Kennecott mine. Itafos Conda fulfills approximately 40% of its sulfuric acid requirements from volumes produced internally and approximately 60% from a combination of volumes received from the Kennecott mine under a long-term supply agreement and volumes procured from other third party producers. On 18 August 2020, Rio Tinto announced that its Kennecott mine in Utah, USA, has experienced delays to the restart of the smelter. According to the announcement, such delays to the restart of the smelter are due to unexpected issues that appeared following planned maintenance. Rio Tinto further announced that they are working closely with their customers to limit any disruptions and expect to have the smelter fully operational in two months.
The company has been and will continue working to mitigate potential adverse effects of the disruption in sulfuric acid supply to Itafos Conda from Rio Tinto’s Kennecott mine. In addition, the company is evaluating the overall expected impact of such sulfuric acid supply disruption and expects to provide an update on its guidance for 2020 in parallel with reporting its 2Q20 financial results and operational highlights.