Itronics Stage I Silver Refinery Expansion to Increase Refining Capacity by 10 Times on Track for August Start Up
July 14 2010 - 12:54PM
Marketwired
Itronics Inc. (PINKSHEETS: ITROD) reported today that its wholly
owned subsidiary, Itronics Metallurgical, Inc., has scheduled its
Stage I silver refinery expansion for start up in August 2010. The
expansion was originally announced in October 2009 and plans were
updated in January of this year.
"The price of silver has risen from under five dollars per ounce
in 2000 to prices that have topped more than $20 per ounce in
recent time periods. We see continued strengthening in the price of
silver. To be able to recover more of this valuable commodity more
efficiently is very important for our future," said Dr. John
Whitney, Itronics President. Part of the Stage I leaching circuit
is already operational utilizing the Company's new, revolutionary
FeLix and SuLix leaching processes. "We are pleased by the progress
being made to advance this expansion project and once operational,
this revolutionary technology will increase profitability and open
up new pathways to growth," Dr. Whitney said.
In a press release issued in November 2008 Itronics announced
plans for expansion of its silver refining capacity in two stages
from 24,000 ounces per year to 2.4 million ounces per year. The
Stage I expansion will increase the silver refining capacity to
240,000 ounces per year by increasing the per melt capacity of the
refining operation by 10 times with no increase in per melt cost.
This produces a 90 percent decrease of the per melt cost of each
ounce of silver produced. At current silver prices of $17.50 per
ounce, annual silver bullion sales capacity would increase from
$420,000 to $4 million. At a sales level of 2.4 million troy ounces
of silver per year, sales capacity would rise to $42 million per
year.
"The increase in per melt capacity will be more than sufficient
to accommodate intermediate term GOLD'n GRO fertilizer sales
growth, and will also provide the capacity for acquisition of new
silver-bearing raw materials to further expand growth. Once the
Stage I leach circuit is operational, silver bullion output is
expected to double due to an immediate increase in the total amount
and the percentage of silver recovered in each melt," Dr. Whitney
explained.
The Stage 1 refinery expansion will also produce two new
fertilizer raw materials as byproducts, which are expected to
improve GOLD'n GRO fertilizer quality and profitability by
replacing fertilizer ingredients which are presently purchased from
outside suppliers.
Itronics Metallurgical has identified several other potential
applications where the FeLix and SuLix processes could reduce both
processing costs and waste by profitably converting material
presently being wasted into commercial products. Two of the most
important silver-bearing materials are:
- Processing steel wool (ion exchange) cartridges which are
widely used in the United States to perform on site silver removal
from photographic liquids at user sites where silver-bearing
photoliquids hauling is not required. Both iron and silver would be
recovered. This is a large source of iron and photo silver with
millions of ounces of silver being recovered annually in these
cartridges in the United States.
- Processing the cores of non-mercury bearing silver batteries to
recover potassium, zinc, and silver. Zinc silver batteries are
primarily used in military and space applications, but some new
technology zinc silver batteries are being developed for use in
portable computers. If these new technologies are adopted, there
will be a large increase in zinc silver battery usage worldwide and
an associated need for zinc silver battery recycling services.
Itronics Metallurgical has revised its process flow sheet to
utilize separate leach reactors that will be dedicated to
processing each new category of silver-bearing materials. Using
this approach makes it possible to establish new raw material
sources and partially diversify silver output away from its current
reliance on silver-bearing photographic liquids as source
materials. This also establishes a new operating platform for
generating growth in silver output and fertilizer raw
materials.
This refining technology development completes another step in
Itronics' implementation of its five year plan to use internally
developed environmentally green clean technology to produce solid
profitable growth. This focused approach to the development and use
of creative new clean technology has made the vertically integrated
"Beneficial Use Photochemical, Silver, and Water Recycling"
technology and the GOLD'n GRO brand of "award winning,"
environmentally friendly fertilizers a success. Itronics'
revolutionary technologies create a "Green Consumer Option" for
photo and x-ray processors that continue to use silver halide photo
technologies to make prints and x-rays.
About Itronics
Headquartered in Reno, Nevada, Itronics is a Cleantech Specialty
Fertilizer and Silver Company that produces the Award Winning
GOLD'n GRO liquid fertilizers and pure silver bullion. Itronics,
through its subsidiary, Itronics Metallurgical, Inc., is the only
company with a fully permitted "Beneficial Use photochemical,
Silver, and Water Recycling" plant in the United States that
converts spent photoliquids into pure silver and GOLD'n GRO liquid
fertilizers. The Company is developing environmentally compatible
mining technology, provides project planning and technical services
to the gold mining industry, and operates the popular
InsideMetals.com web site, http://www.insidemetals.com, which
provides a value-added WORLD VIEW of Gold Producer Stocks, Mineral
Producer Stocks, Junior Gold Stocks, and Junior Mineral Stocks.
Itronics has received numerous domestic and international awards
that recognize its ability to successfully create and implement new
environmentally clean recycling and fertilizer technologies.
The Company's environmentally friendly GOLD'n GRO liquid
fertilizers, which are extensively used in agriculture, can be used
for lawns and houseplants, and are available, along with liquid
fertilizer injectors, at the Company's "e-store" catalog at
http://goldngro.com. The popular Silver Nevada Miner bars are
available at the Company's "e-store" catalog at
http://www.itromet.com.
VISIT OUR WEB SITE: http://www.itronics.com
("Safe Harbor" Statement under the Private Securities Litigation
Reform Act of 1995: This press release contains or may contain
forward-looking statements such as statements regarding the
Company's growth and profitability, growth strategy, liquidity and
access to public markets, operating expense reduction, and trends
in the industry in which the Company operates. The forward-looking
statements contained in this press release are also subject to
other risks and uncertainties, including those more fully described
in the Company's filings with the Securities and Exchange
Commission. The Company assumes no obligation to update these
forward-looking statements to reflect actual results, changes in
risks, uncertainties or assumptions underlying or affecting such
statements, or for prospective events that may have a retroactive
effect.)
Contact: Paul Knopick 888-795-6336
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