The Yunnan Tin Company (YTC) has highlighted the importance of new tin innovations and smelting technologies to the future of China’s tin industry. YTC General Manager Zhang Fu presented the company’s outlook at the 2015 ITRI China International Tin Forum in Shanghai, which it co-hosted.
Zhang Fu outlined how China’s economy is transitioning from previous growth rate highs of ~10% to a ~7% rate of long term growth. China’s economy is adapting to this “new normal” by focussing on quality and efficiency rather than speed and quantity. YTC believes that China’s tin industry can make this adaption by benefiting from the development and increased demand for tin innovations such as photovoltaic cells and batteries.
YTC is the world’s largest producer of refined tin, producing 75,924 tonnes in 2014. Vice General Manager Gu Helin outlined how the company continues to develop tin smelting technology and emphasised the importance of engagement and co-operation with universities and research institutions in furthering this work. Automation of control systems and further advances in pollution control were suggested as key areas for improvement.
Continued development work is necessary because of the increasing volume of concentrates from tailings sites and ore deposits with complex mineralogies that are difficult to treat using conventional smelting methods. Gu Helin noted that tin fuming and volatilisation technology has made considerable progress in recent years. The technology is critical for several active tin projects, such as Consolidated Tin Mines’ Mt. Garnet tin project, which is undertaking metallurgical testing using the tin fuming method.
