 | |
| Company type | Public |
|---|---|
| ASX: ZFX | |
| Industry | Mining and refining |
| Founded | 2002 |
| Defunct | 30 June 2008 |
| Fate | Merged withOxiana to formOZ Minerals |
| Successor | OZ Minerals |
| Headquarters | , Australia |
| Products | Zinc, lead, silver |
| Revenue | $4.6 billion (2007) |
| $1.7 billion (2007) | |
| $1.3 billion (2007) | |
| Website | www.zinifex.com.au |
Zinifex was an Australian company that operatedlead andzinc mines,refineries and a leadsmelter. It was established in April 2004, when the assets ofPasminco werespun-off. In 2008 it merged withOxiana to formOZ Minerals.
In September 2001,Pasminco was placed involuntary administration.[1][2][3] Some assets were sold by administratorFerrier Hodgson, with the remaining profitable assetsspun-off to a new entity, Zinifex, which waslisted on theAustralian Securities Exchange (ASX) in April 2004. Assets included mines inMount Isa andRosebery, andsmelters inBudel (The Netherlands),Clarkesville (United States),Hobart andPort Pirie.[4][5][6]
After floating on the ASX, Zinifex proved successful mainly due to the company keeping nohedges in place, and benefiting from rises in the zinc price. The share price rose from $1.80 in April 2004 to over $18 in December 2006.[7]
On 1 July 2008, Zinifex merged withOxiana to formOZ Minerals.[8][9][10]
Zinifex Limited was engaged in minerals exploration, production and smelting to produce zinc and lead concentrates, and zinc, lead and silver metals together with various alloys and byproducts, and the marketing of these products. The segments of the company includedCentury Mine inMount Isa, a large open cut zinc, lead and silver mine, operating on a mining lease secured for at least the life of the mine; Rosebery Mine inRosebery, Tasmania, a medium-sized underground zinc, lead, silver, gold and copper mine;Port Pirie Smelter, a primary lead smelting facility; Australian Refined Alloys, an acid battery and lead recycling business owned 50% by Zinifex in a joint venture withSims Metal Management;Budel Smelter, an electrolytic smelter, and Clarksville Smelter, a modern smelter to access a large portion of the United States zinc market.[11][12]
In December 2006, Zinifex announced it would merge its smelting operations with those ofUmicore,[13] to formNyrstar that was floated in October 2007.[14] This left Zinifex as purely a mining company.[15][16][17]
In early 2007, a number of incidents affected Zinifex: The Port Pirie smelter had a steam explosion in February[18] and an explosion when moisture contacted molten copper in March.[19] It also had a loading barge used to export ore from the Century Mine damaged in a cyclone.[20]
