Date: Nov 16, 2017
Reporter Anna Xu wraps up four key things Metal Bulletin learned at the annual tungsten, vanadium and titanium conference held in Xiamen city, in China’s Fujian province, on November 9-10.
China’s tungsten supply tightness to persist into 2018; demand to rise Supply of tungsten concentrates in China is likely to remain tight next year as miners with less than 60,000 tonnes of mining capacity per year are set to shut. The move comes as the Chinese government steps up its supply-side reform in an effort to improve environmental conditions in the country, which includes the implementation of a new environmental tax law – due to come into effect on January 1, 2018. China’s mining quota of tungsten concentrates for 2018 is expected to be in line with the quota issued for this year, at around 91,000 tonnes, as the country continues to implement its sustainable development policy on precious mineral resources. Meanwhile, usage of tungsten concentrates in domestic production of ammonium paratungstate (APT) has averaged 130,000 tonnes per year over the past three years – resulting in a deficit of 40,000 tpy,..
