Altech Chemicals has completed site clearance works on 4 hectares of industrial land set aside for its high purity alumina plant in the Tanjung Langsat Industrial complex in Johor, Malaysia.
Site clearance commenced early in July following the execution of the Stage 1 agreement for the “HPA” plant with appointed German engineering, procurement and construction contractor, the SMS group.
The completion of the site clearance works in just under 4 years since the site was selected is another key development milestone for the company’s proposed Malaysian HPA that looks to be entering the right market at the right time.
Altech MD, Iggy Tan said: “The site clearance caps off an exciting 12 month period for Altech as we take another step towards our goal of becoming a major producer of high purity alumina.”
The company selected the Tanjung Industrial complex in Johor for its proposed plant based on the significant economic and development benefits, including the ready availability of key consumables such as hydrochloric acid, limestone and quicklime and nearby utilities such as power and natural gas, at very competitive prices.
The availability of skilled labour, proximity to an international container port and international airports pretty well seals the deal for Altech.
Manufacturing in the area also provides various investment incentives, such as a 5-year corporate tax benefit to businesses utilising the Industrial complex.
The region is located just kilometres from Singapore across the water and is a dynamic and vibrant industrial corridor and global manufacturing hub in south-east Asia.
Johor is an international metropolis for investment, providing political and social stability, fully-developed industrial parks, a growing English-speaking workforce and supportive Government policies.
The region also has the largest concentration of leading manufacturers and exporters of electronic products such as semiconductors and synthetic sapphire products, solar panel and glass products, textiles, rubber and wood products.
Altech proposes to produce up to 4,500 tonnes per annum of HPA at the plant, using high purity kaolin clays sourced from a shallow open pit mine near Meckering, just east of Perth in W.A.
HPA is used in high tech applications such as LED lighting, as a separator in lithium-ion batteries and in advanced mobile phones.
The company is targeting a high-quality alumina product that is currently fetching about USD$27,000 per tonne.
Altech has enough raw material in-ground at Meckering to see out nearly 250 years of production.
Given the ongoing and burgeoning demand for many of the resultant end-user products that will be manufactured from Altech’s high purity alumina, the ASX listed company looks to be setting itself up for a solid future in a market that doesn’t look like dying off anytime soon.
By Matt Birney
