Tasnee postpones its titanium sponge project to H1 2019

The National Industrialization Company (TASNEE) has postponed the trial run and the commercial startup of its titanium sponge project to the first half of 2019, the firm said in a bourse statement on Thursday.

This is driven by the delay in the construction of the raw material unit (titanium tetrachloride), which was supposed to be complete by Q1 2019.

Accordingly, the project’s estimated costs ($440 million) are expected to increase by $60 million, the statement said.

The project is owned by Advanced Metal Industries Co. (AMIC), which is 50:50 owned by Tasnee and Cristal unit.

The relevant financial impact cannot be determined at present, and further updates will be unveiled later, the statement added.

The project, which is located in Yanbu industrial City, will initially produce 15,600 tons a year (tpa) of pure titanium, the statement said.

In January 2014, Tasnee signed a joint venture agreement with Japan’s Toho Titanium Co. Ltd. to build the SAR 1.6 billion project.

AMIC owns 65 percent of the project, while Toho Titanium holds the remaining 35 percent.