Dalur JSC Leading among the Enterprises of the Mining Division of Rosatom State Corporation in Terms of Labour Productivity

Dalur JSC is leading among the enterprises of the mining division of Rosatom State Corporation in terms of labour productivity and uranium prime cost. Vladimir Verkhovtsev, Head of ARMZ Uranium Holding Co., said at the traditional Director’s Day, “I am sure that our workforce will be able not only to retain, but also to improve the achieved indicators of the main activity profitability”.

In 2016, labour productivity at the enterprise increased by 57% as compared to 2015 and amounted to RUB 5.3 million/person. According to the results of 2017, further growth to RUB 6.42 million/person is expected. This will be facilitated by the further development of Dalmatovskoye and Khokhlovskoye deposits, as well as by the implementation of the associated scandium extraction project.

It shall be noted that the investment of Rosatom SC in the development of Dalur JSC amounted to RUB 1.5 billion only over the last year and a half. These funds were invested in mining and capital works, industrial construction and modernization. Vladimir Verkhovtsev emphasized, “Implementation of the investment programme will help us ensure the supply of raw materials at the competitive cost to the Russian nuclear industry for a long-term perspective, given the decline in uranium prices in the global market”.

Nikolay Poponin, Director General of Dalur JSC, reported that in the first half of 2017, the enterprise produced 295.3 tonnes of uranium, which amounts to 103% of the volume planned. By the end of the year, a total of some 580 tonnes of strategic metal, or 20% of all uranium in Russia, will be recovered at the enterprise.

Commissioning of a pilot plant started within the associated scandium extraction project implementation. The first batch of finished scandium oxide was received in June 2017. Nikolay Poponin noted as follows, “To date, 5 kg of scandium oxide have been produced fully meeting the requirements. Planned annual production after completion of commissioning is 1.5 tonnes of scandium oxide, which amounts to 15% of the global volume. This is a raw stock for production of 53 tonnes of aluminum-scandium master alloys to be used, in particular, in aviation and space production. Thus, according to the forecast, we will be able to significantly increase our profit, so that by the end of the year it will amount to RUB 0.9 billion”.

A number of projects of the Rosatom Production System will have a significant impact on prime cost reduction. In particular, those are the changes in the acidification technology for the operating units, the replacement of the ammonium carbonate with anhydrous ammonia in the cycle of precipitation of rich eluate, etc. The cost of electricity and heat purchased on the market is reduced as well. Nikolay Poponin said, “Within the framework of the preparations for the creation of the priority development area in the Dalmatovskiy district, a Geostroy subsidiary built a gas powered electrical cogeneration generator providing electricity and heat by processing natural gas close to our central production site. The required 4.2 mW of electricity per hour is now at least 10% cheaper than the market price”.

Once the main reports were delivered, senior executives of ARMZ Uranium Holding Co. and Dalur JSC answered the questions of the employees of the enterprise. The best employees of Dalur JSC, who participated in the contest of Rosatom Person of the Year, were awarded diplomas and memorable gifts on the Director’s Day. The enterprise employees were also given Certificates of Acknowledgment of the Head of Dalmatovskiy district for their production success.