Boliden AB
Encyclopedia
New Boliden is a Swedish
mining
and smelting
company
focusing on production of copper
, zinc
, lead
, gold
and silver
. Following a series of acquisitions during the 1980s and 1990s the company acquired mining and smelting assets of the Finnish mining and smelting company Outokumpu
in 2003. Outokumpu acquired the subsidiary Boliden Contech and Boliden's copper and zinc divisions. As a consequence of the deal, Outokumpu ended up controlling 49 percent of the Boliden shares.
The company has approximately 4,500 employees. The name comes from the Boliden
mine, some 30 km northwest of the Swedish town of Skellefteå
, where gold was found in 1924. It was once Europe's largest and richest gold mine, but since 1967 the mine has been defunct.
The leading light in the development of the Boliden company was Oscar Falkman (1877–1961), who was the driving force behind the exploration work that began in the second decade of the 20th century, and which was accelerated due to the metal shortage that arose in the wake of World War I. Falkman continued in the role of Boliden’s President until 1941. Boliden AB was also part of the financier, Ivar Kreuger’s business empire until 1932.
The Rönnskär smelter was built to process the Boliden ore, and commenced smelting operations in 1930.
The world’s longest ore tramway, between Boliden’s mine in Kristineberg and Boliden became operational in 1943. The ore tramway was 96 km long and by the time it was shut down, 44 years later, it had transported 12 million tonnes of concentrate.
Operations started at the Aitik mine, outside Gällivare, in 1968. This open pit mine would develop, over the years, into one of Europe’s biggest copper mines. During its first year of operations, it produced approximately 9,000 tonnes of copper, 160 kg of gold and 7 tonnes of silver.
The company grew during the first few years of the 1970s thanks to a joint venture with the German company, Preussag. This led to the expansion of Boliden’s lead smelting and refining capacity, and in 1976, Boliden launched the Kaldo furnace, which is a furnace for processing metals. 1976 also saw Boliden launch the first flash smelting furnace for lead, applying Kaldo technology, at Rönnskär.
In the mid-1980s, Boliden exported a total of 20,000 tonnes of metallic residues from the Rönnskär smelter to the Chilean company, PROMEL, for processing. Boliden paid PROMEL for processing work that was never carried out and the residues were, instead, stored on the outskirts of the town of Arica
at a site which was converted to a low-cost residential area in the 1990s on the instructions of the social services. The residents were unaware of the waste’s presence and as a result, many people came to harm. In the autumn of 2009, the Chilean government announced that the 7,000 or so residents of the area would be evacuated. The waste was exported before the Basel Convention prohibiting the export of environmentally hazardous waste came into force.
At the end of 1987, the Trelleborg industrial conglomerate acquired a controlling interest in Boliden. The same year also saw Boliden acquire the Spanish company, Apirsa S.L., which extracted zinc from the Aznalcóllar
open pit mine, 45 km west of Seville
.
Trelleborg launched a major restructuring of the Boliden Group in 1996, and the new company, Boliden Limited, was formed in Toronto. Two years later, Boliden Ltd. bought the Canadian company, Westmin.
On 25 April 1998, the tailings dam at Apirsa’s Los Frailes mine burst and 4.5 million cubic metres of tailings sand drained out into the nearby Guadiamar
river. Extensive investigations revealed defects in both the dam’s original construction and in subsequent construction projects.
The company reacted quickly to the situation and immediately began a comprehensive programme of reclamation work. In 2001, Boliden was granted a total discharge from liability for the accident by a Spanish court. In 2006, Boliden lost the demand against the companies that built the dam Aznalcóllar. The Spanish Supreme Court also confirmed that Boliden should pay 43,7 millions of euros to the Spanish government . The recovery costs of Aznalcóllar are estimated to be 240 million of euro, Boliden has not assumed any part of these costs.
In 1999, Boliden implemented a restructuring programme at Group level and the Boliden share was listed on the Stockholm stock exchange.
In 2001, Boliden’s head office was relocated back to Sweden.
In late 2003, Boliden bought smelters and a mine from the Finnish steel group, Outokumpu, and as a result, the Kokkola and Harjavalta/Pori smelters in Finland and the Odda smelter in Norway became part of Boliden. The purchase also included the Tara zinc mine in Ireland.
Decision to invest in an expansion of the Aitik mine. Agreement with OM Group Inc (OMG) regarding the refining of nickel concentrate at Harjavalta. Successful exploration resulted in increases to Garpenberg’s ore reserves. A new lead section was also opened at Bergsöe.
2005
Kvarnberget is the name given to a new mineralisation discovered in Garpenberg. Decision to invest in expansion of the Harjavalta smelter. Feasibility study of possible expansion of the Aitik mine. Boliden sells its shares in Breakwater Resources and Lundin Mining. First edition of Boliden’s in-house magazine, "Boliden Magazine", published.
2004
New Boliden is created through the structural transaction with Outokumpu. Work begins on creating Boliden’s new strategic platform – the New Boliden Way (NBW). The Odda zinc smelter is modernised.
2003
Boliden acquires Outokumpu’s mining and smelting operations and sells its Fabrication and Technology Sales operations to Outokumpu.
2001
A fourth expansion takes place at Kokkola, increasing capacity to 260,000 tonnes per year, making it one of the world’s biggest zinc smelters.
2000
Harjavalta’s nickel operations are sold. Maurliden, the 28th mine in the Boliden Area, opens. The new Rönnskär complex is inaugurated.
1998
The Spanish Los Frailes mine closes as a result of the tailings dam failure. The Rönnskär +200 expansion – an investment of SEK 1.9 billion – is approved. The direct leaching method is implemented at Kokkola.
1997
Boliden establishes its head office in Toronto. The share is listed on the Toronto and Montreal stock exchanges.
1995
Harjavalta is expanded, increasing copper production by 60 per cent and nickel production by 200 per cent.
1993
The “copper shuttle” train begins transporting copper cathodes from Skelleftehamn to Elektrokoppar in Helsingborg.
1990
The concentrator at Boliden is expanded and modernised. The Outokumpu Group is incorporated, and the zinc smelter becomes known as Outokumpu Zinc Oy and the copper and nickel smelters as Outokumpu Harjavalta Metals Oy.
1988
The Spanish mining company, Apirsa SL, becomes a subsidiary of Boliden.
1987
The Swedish industrial conglomerate, Trelleborg AB, takes a controlling interest in Boliden.
1979
Boliden buys Paul Bergsöe & Son.
1977
Production starts at the Irish zinc mine, Tara.
1970
Production of aluminium fluoride begins at Odda. In Ireland, Tara discovers the big zinc and lead deposit.
1969
Operations begin at the zinc smelter in Kokkola.
1968
Mining operations start at Aitik.
1967
The Boliden mine is closed down. Outokumpu decides to establish its own zinc smelter in Kokkola.
1964
Boliden buys half of the shares in the Norwegian zinc smelter, Det Norske Zinkkompani A/S (Odda).
1957
Boliden acquires the Garpenberg mine from Zinkgruvor AB.
1955
The world’s deepest railway – between the Långsele and Boliden mines – is completed.
1952
Construction of a sulphuric acid plant at Rönnskär to exploit the sulphur dioxide-bearing chimney gases.
1949
The flash smelting method is introduced at Harjavalta.
1946
Boliden publishes Sweden’s first in-house magazine, “Smältdegeln” [The Melting Pot].
1945
Copper production starts at Harjavalta.
1943
The 96-kilometre ore tramway between Kristineberg and Boliden opens. Tin and lead smelting starts at Bergsöe.
1942
Lead plant built at Rönnskär. Paul Bergsöe & Son AB formed in Landskrona.
1940
Operations start at the Kristineberg mine.
1939
Outokumpu Oy starts extracting zinc concentrate from Outokumpu ore.
1931
The two mining companies – Västerbottens Gruvaktiebolag and Skellefteås Gruvaktiebolag – are merged to form Bolidens Gruvaktiebolag.
1930
Operations start at the Rönnskär smelter.
1929
Zinc production begins at Odda. The first ore train to Rönnskär leaves Boliden on 24 September.
1925
Västerbottens Gruvaktiebolag and Skellefteå Gruvaktiebolag are formed.
1924
Gold discovered at Fågelmyran in Boliden.
copper mine (a major mine within the company) was featured on a 2007 episode of the Discovery Channel
series "Really Big Things
".
Sweden
Sweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sweden borders with Norway and Finland and is connected to Denmark by a bridge-tunnel across the Öresund....
mining
Mining
Mining is the extraction of valuable minerals or other geological materials from the earth, from an ore body, vein or seam. The term also includes the removal of soil. Materials recovered by mining include base metals, precious metals, iron, uranium, coal, diamonds, limestone, oil shale, rock...
and smelting
Smelting
Smelting is a form of extractive metallurgy; its main use is to produce a metal from its ore. This includes iron extraction from iron ore, and copper extraction and other base metals from their ores...
company
Corporation
A corporation is created under the laws of a state as a separate legal entity that has privileges and liabilities that are distinct from those of its members. There are many different forms of corporations, most of which are used to conduct business. Early corporations were established by charter...
focusing on production of copper
Copper
Copper is a chemical element with the symbol Cu and atomic number 29. It is a ductile metal with very high thermal and electrical conductivity. Pure copper is soft and malleable; an exposed surface has a reddish-orange tarnish...
, zinc
Zinc
Zinc , or spelter , is a metallic chemical element; it has the symbol Zn and atomic number 30. It is the first element in group 12 of the periodic table. Zinc is, in some respects, chemically similar to magnesium, because its ion is of similar size and its only common oxidation state is +2...
, lead
Lead
Lead is a main-group element in the carbon group with the symbol Pb and atomic number 82. Lead is a soft, malleable poor metal. It is also counted as one of the heavy metals. Metallic lead has a bluish-white color after being freshly cut, but it soon tarnishes to a dull grayish color when exposed...
, gold
Gold
Gold is a chemical element with the symbol Au and an atomic number of 79. Gold is a dense, soft, shiny, malleable and ductile metal. Pure gold has a bright yellow color and luster traditionally considered attractive, which it maintains without oxidizing in air or water. Chemically, gold is a...
and silver
Silver
Silver is a metallic chemical element with the chemical symbol Ag and atomic number 47. A soft, white, lustrous transition metal, it has the highest electrical conductivity of any element and the highest thermal conductivity of any metal...
. Following a series of acquisitions during the 1980s and 1990s the company acquired mining and smelting assets of the Finnish mining and smelting company Outokumpu
Outokumpu
Outokumpu is a group of companies headquartered in Espoo, Finland, aimed at stainless steel. The company has approx. 8 000 employees in about 30 different countries worldwide...
in 2003. Outokumpu acquired the subsidiary Boliden Contech and Boliden's copper and zinc divisions. As a consequence of the deal, Outokumpu ended up controlling 49 percent of the Boliden shares.
The company has approximately 4,500 employees. The name comes from the Boliden
Boliden
Boliden is a locality situated in Skellefteå Municipality, Västerbotten County, Sweden with 1,515 inhabitants in 2005. It lies 28,5 kilometers from Skellefteå City....
mine, some 30 km northwest of the Swedish town of Skellefteå
Skellefteå Municipality
Skellefteå Municipality is a municipality in Västerbotten County in northern Sweden. Its seat is located in Skellefteå.-History:Most of the amalgamations leading to the present municipality took place in 1967 when the then "City of Skellefteå" was merged with the rural municipality by the same...
, where gold was found in 1924. It was once Europe's largest and richest gold mine, but since 1967 the mine has been defunct.
Mines
Business Area Mines conducts exploration, mining and milling operations in Sweden and Ireland. Its main products are zinc and copper concentrate, with some lead, gold and silver content. The goods produced are sold both to the Group’s own smelters and to external customers. Boliden owns and operates Europe’s biggest zinc mine at Tara in Ireland. Tara became part of Boliden in early 2004, but production began there in 1977, since when over 60 million tonnes of ore have been mined. Boliden also owns Garpenberg, which is Sweden’s oldest mine still in operation. Mining at Garpenberg began back in the 13th century. The mineral-rich Skellefte field lies within the Boliden Area, where almost 30 mines have been opened since production began in the 1920s and where Boliden currently operates the Renström and Kristineberg underground mines and the Maurliden open pit mine. Boliden also owns and operates the Aitik open pit mine, which is one of Europe’s biggest copper mines. Metal grades at Aitik are low, but this is compensated for by high productivity levels and efficient milling processes that also exploit the ore’s gold and silver content. An expansion project that will double Aitik’s ore production to 36 million tonnes per annum by 2014 began in 2007 and will be completed in 2010.Smelters
Business Area Smelters refines both metal concentrate and secondary materials to produce base and precious metals at smelters in Sweden, Finland and Norway. The main metals are zinc and copper but the production of lead, gold and silver also makes a substantial contribution to the Business Area’s revenues. Other products include sulphuric acid and aluminium fluoride. Boliden owns and operates two zinc and two copper smelters and one lead smelter. The Kokkola zinc smelter in Finland is the second largest in Europe and the fifth largest in the world, and mainly produces an alloy used in the galvanising of thin sheet metal. The Odda zinc smelter, which produces zinc for the steel industry and aluminium fluoride for Norway’s aluminium industry, is located on the west coast of Norway. The Rönnskär copper smelter is located in the Swedish town of Skelleftehamn and its main products are copper, zinc clinker, lead and precious metals. The smelter, which produces sulphuric acid as a by-product of its operations, also produces metals from electronic scrap and other secondary materials. The Harjavalta copper smelter, located on the west coast of Finland, produces copper cathodes that are mainly sold to manufacturers of semi-finished goods. Other important products include gold, silver and sulphuric acid. The Bergsöe lead smelter outside Landskrona in southern Sweden extracts lead from scrap car batteries. Bergsöe is one of Europe’s four biggest players in the lead recycling industry. Approximately 60 per cent of the plant’s lead production is sold to the European battery industry, with the remainder used in the manufacture of roofing sheet.History
On 10 December 1924, a sensational ore deposit was discovered at Fågelmyran, just over 30 km northwest of Skellefteå. Test drilling revealed what was then Europe’s richest ore. The first Boliden ore was extracted in the spring of 1926 at what would become the Boliden mine – a mine that would prove, over the course of several decades, to be Europe’s biggest and richest gold mine. The deposit also included copper and large amounts of silver. The town of Boliden quickly grew up around the mine.The leading light in the development of the Boliden company was Oscar Falkman (1877–1961), who was the driving force behind the exploration work that began in the second decade of the 20th century, and which was accelerated due to the metal shortage that arose in the wake of World War I. Falkman continued in the role of Boliden’s President until 1941. Boliden AB was also part of the financier, Ivar Kreuger’s business empire until 1932.
The Rönnskär smelter was built to process the Boliden ore, and commenced smelting operations in 1930.
The world’s longest ore tramway, between Boliden’s mine in Kristineberg and Boliden became operational in 1943. The ore tramway was 96 km long and by the time it was shut down, 44 years later, it had transported 12 million tonnes of concentrate.
Operations started at the Aitik mine, outside Gällivare, in 1968. This open pit mine would develop, over the years, into one of Europe’s biggest copper mines. During its first year of operations, it produced approximately 9,000 tonnes of copper, 160 kg of gold and 7 tonnes of silver.
The company grew during the first few years of the 1970s thanks to a joint venture with the German company, Preussag. This led to the expansion of Boliden’s lead smelting and refining capacity, and in 1976, Boliden launched the Kaldo furnace, which is a furnace for processing metals. 1976 also saw Boliden launch the first flash smelting furnace for lead, applying Kaldo technology, at Rönnskär.
In the mid-1980s, Boliden exported a total of 20,000 tonnes of metallic residues from the Rönnskär smelter to the Chilean company, PROMEL, for processing. Boliden paid PROMEL for processing work that was never carried out and the residues were, instead, stored on the outskirts of the town of Arica
Arica
Arica is a city in northern Chile. "Arica" may also refer to:Places* Arica and Parinacota Region, Chile* Arica Airport , Chile* Arica, Amazonas, town in Colombia* Rio Aricá-açu, tributary of the Cuiabá River south of Cuiabá, BrazilOther...
at a site which was converted to a low-cost residential area in the 1990s on the instructions of the social services. The residents were unaware of the waste’s presence and as a result, many people came to harm. In the autumn of 2009, the Chilean government announced that the 7,000 or so residents of the area would be evacuated. The waste was exported before the Basel Convention prohibiting the export of environmentally hazardous waste came into force.
At the end of 1987, the Trelleborg industrial conglomerate acquired a controlling interest in Boliden. The same year also saw Boliden acquire the Spanish company, Apirsa S.L., which extracted zinc from the Aznalcóllar
Aznalcóllar
Aznalcóllar is a city located in the province of Seville, southern Spain. It is located at the feet of the Sierra Morena.- Aznalcollar mine :The Boliden mine produces around 125,000 tonnes of zinc and 2.9 million ounces of silver per year....
open pit mine, 45 km west of Seville
Seville
Seville is the artistic, historic, cultural, and financial capital of southern Spain. It is the capital of the autonomous community of Andalusia and of the province of Seville. It is situated on the plain of the River Guadalquivir, with an average elevation of above sea level...
.
Trelleborg launched a major restructuring of the Boliden Group in 1996, and the new company, Boliden Limited, was formed in Toronto. Two years later, Boliden Ltd. bought the Canadian company, Westmin.
On 25 April 1998, the tailings dam at Apirsa’s Los Frailes mine burst and 4.5 million cubic metres of tailings sand drained out into the nearby Guadiamar
Guadiamar
The Guadiamar is a river of Andalusia, Spain, and a tributary of the Guadalquivir.It flows through Doñana National Park.In 1998, the company Boliden AB was responsible for a major ecological disaster in Spain, when a reservoir of toxic waste in the town of Aznalcóllar, owned by its subsidiary...
river. Extensive investigations revealed defects in both the dam’s original construction and in subsequent construction projects.
The company reacted quickly to the situation and immediately began a comprehensive programme of reclamation work. In 2001, Boliden was granted a total discharge from liability for the accident by a Spanish court. In 2006, Boliden lost the demand against the companies that built the dam Aznalcóllar. The Spanish Supreme Court also confirmed that Boliden should pay 43,7 millions of euros to the Spanish government . The recovery costs of Aznalcóllar are estimated to be 240 million of euro, Boliden has not assumed any part of these costs.
In 1999, Boliden implemented a restructuring programme at Group level and the Boliden share was listed on the Stockholm stock exchange.
In 2001, Boliden’s head office was relocated back to Sweden.
In late 2003, Boliden bought smelters and a mine from the Finnish steel group, Outokumpu, and as a result, the Kokkola and Harjavalta/Pori smelters in Finland and the Odda smelter in Norway became part of Boliden. The purchase also included the Tara zinc mine in Ireland.
History in brief
2006Decision to invest in an expansion of the Aitik mine. Agreement with OM Group Inc (OMG) regarding the refining of nickel concentrate at Harjavalta. Successful exploration resulted in increases to Garpenberg’s ore reserves. A new lead section was also opened at Bergsöe.
2005
Kvarnberget is the name given to a new mineralisation discovered in Garpenberg. Decision to invest in expansion of the Harjavalta smelter. Feasibility study of possible expansion of the Aitik mine. Boliden sells its shares in Breakwater Resources and Lundin Mining. First edition of Boliden’s in-house magazine, "Boliden Magazine", published.
2004
New Boliden is created through the structural transaction with Outokumpu. Work begins on creating Boliden’s new strategic platform – the New Boliden Way (NBW). The Odda zinc smelter is modernised.
2003
Boliden acquires Outokumpu’s mining and smelting operations and sells its Fabrication and Technology Sales operations to Outokumpu.
2001
A fourth expansion takes place at Kokkola, increasing capacity to 260,000 tonnes per year, making it one of the world’s biggest zinc smelters.
2000
Harjavalta’s nickel operations are sold. Maurliden, the 28th mine in the Boliden Area, opens. The new Rönnskär complex is inaugurated.
1998
The Spanish Los Frailes mine closes as a result of the tailings dam failure. The Rönnskär +200 expansion – an investment of SEK 1.9 billion – is approved. The direct leaching method is implemented at Kokkola.
1997
Boliden establishes its head office in Toronto. The share is listed on the Toronto and Montreal stock exchanges.
1995
Harjavalta is expanded, increasing copper production by 60 per cent and nickel production by 200 per cent.
1993
The “copper shuttle” train begins transporting copper cathodes from Skelleftehamn to Elektrokoppar in Helsingborg.
1990
The concentrator at Boliden is expanded and modernised. The Outokumpu Group is incorporated, and the zinc smelter becomes known as Outokumpu Zinc Oy and the copper and nickel smelters as Outokumpu Harjavalta Metals Oy.
1988
The Spanish mining company, Apirsa SL, becomes a subsidiary of Boliden.
1987
The Swedish industrial conglomerate, Trelleborg AB, takes a controlling interest in Boliden.
1979
Boliden buys Paul Bergsöe & Son.
1977
Production starts at the Irish zinc mine, Tara.
1970
Production of aluminium fluoride begins at Odda. In Ireland, Tara discovers the big zinc and lead deposit.
1969
Operations begin at the zinc smelter in Kokkola.
1968
Mining operations start at Aitik.
1967
The Boliden mine is closed down. Outokumpu decides to establish its own zinc smelter in Kokkola.
1964
Boliden buys half of the shares in the Norwegian zinc smelter, Det Norske Zinkkompani A/S (Odda).
1957
Boliden acquires the Garpenberg mine from Zinkgruvor AB.
1955
The world’s deepest railway – between the Långsele and Boliden mines – is completed.
1952
Construction of a sulphuric acid plant at Rönnskär to exploit the sulphur dioxide-bearing chimney gases.
1949
The flash smelting method is introduced at Harjavalta.
1946
Boliden publishes Sweden’s first in-house magazine, “Smältdegeln” [The Melting Pot].
1945
Copper production starts at Harjavalta.
1943
The 96-kilometre ore tramway between Kristineberg and Boliden opens. Tin and lead smelting starts at Bergsöe.
1942
Lead plant built at Rönnskär. Paul Bergsöe & Son AB formed in Landskrona.
1940
Operations start at the Kristineberg mine.
1939
Outokumpu Oy starts extracting zinc concentrate from Outokumpu ore.
1931
The two mining companies – Västerbottens Gruvaktiebolag and Skellefteås Gruvaktiebolag – are merged to form Bolidens Gruvaktiebolag.
1930
Operations start at the Rönnskär smelter.
1929
Zinc production begins at Odda. The first ore train to Rönnskär leaves Boliden on 24 September.
1925
Västerbottens Gruvaktiebolag and Skellefteå Gruvaktiebolag are formed.
1924
Gold discovered at Fågelmyran in Boliden.
Media
The AitikAitik
The Aitik copper mine is owned by Boliden AB and situated outside the town of Gällivare in northern Sweden. It is one of Europe's largest open pit copper mines. Associated with the copper, large quantities of gold, silver and since 2008 molybdenum have been mined at Aitik.The mine was put into...
copper mine (a major mine within the company) was featured on a 2007 episode of the Discovery Channel
Discovery Channel
Discovery Channel is an American satellite and cable specialty channel , founded by John Hendricks and distributed by Discovery Communications. It is a publicly traded company run by CEO David Zaslav...
series "Really Big Things
Really Big Things
Really Big Things is a documentary series about massive man-made marvels like big machines, giant telescopes, skyscrapers and other massive structures...
".