Sept 14, 2007- (European Investment Bank) Ambatovy Nickel Project, Madagascar: On 22 August 2007 the EIB signed a loan for USD 300m (approx. EUR 215m) to Ambatovy Minerals SA (AMSA) and Dynatec Madagascar SA (DMSA) for a nickel-cobalt mining and processing project in Madagascar.

The project comprises three main elements: the construction and development of a new open pit nickel-cobalt mine approximately 80km east of Madagascar’s capital Antananarivo; a large scale hydrometallurgical refinery some 11km outside of Toamasina, Madagascar’s main port; and a 220km slurry pipeline connecting the mine and refinery. The refinery is by far the largest project component, creating important value in the country itself rather than only exporting the raw product.

Supported by strong international shareholders (Sherritt Intl. Corp., Sumitomo Corp., Korea Resources Corp and SNC-Lavalin), the Ambatovy project will produce approximately 60 000t of nickel and 5 600t of cobalt metal per year. As such, it is one of the largest nickel mining and processing developments currently being undertaken in the industry. Moreover, the favourable geological characteristics place Ambatovy amongst the lowest cost producers worldwide. Full story