22.07.2021. Following a multi-month commissioning phase, SMS group has handed over a greenfield recycling plant for waste electrical and electronic equipment (WEEE) to Aurus in Mtsensk, Russia. Aurus is a company of Ecopolis Corporation. Ecopolis Corporation is the only operator of WEEE recycling plants in Russia. In 2017, SMS had received the order for the development of this plant.
First facility of its kind
Using a combination of pyro- and hydrometallurgical processes, the facility is the first of its kind in the world. It recovers high-purity copper, nickel, gold, silver and platinum at very high rates and is designed for an annual recycling capacity of 6,000 t of WEEE and 10,000 t of copper scrap. The facility represents an important milestone both in terms of recycling technology and for the global recycling industry.
Maxim Lobanov, CEO of Aurus: “With SMS, we have found a reliable partner for our company. We have implemented and started up the facility successfully, despite the constraints in connection with the coronavirus pandemic.”
Scope of supply
The supply scope included the top blown rotary converter (TBRC), an anode refining furnace, the casting wheel, the refining electrolyser, the precious metals plant and a dedusting system. In addition to the supply of all core components, long-term service agreements were concluded aimed at optimising the plant availability.
Even today, more than 45 million t of electronic scrap have accumulated worldwide. The recycling market in this field is growing continuously. As part of a global innovation initiative, SMS has expanded its group activities to provide holistic solutions for the recycling of non-ferrous metals.
BlueMetals
Under its “BlueMetals” banner, SMS designs and manufactures recyling facilities for the processing of between 1,000 and 120,000 t/a of waste electrical and electronic equipment of different qualities, making an important contribution to a sustainable circular economy.
(Source: SMS group)