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Prony
Resources

Prony
Resources

 

Béatrice Pierre

President of Prony Resources New Caledonia

Editorial

I am so glad to be able to write a short note to welcome you to the Prony Resources New Caledonia website.

Prony Resources is our company; a company made up of extraordinary men and women who participate daily in its growth. Prony Resources New Caledonia is a young, forward-looking company and we are committed to decarbonizing our product in order to sustainably participate in the industrial revolution of global mobility.

At Prony Resources, we contribute to the sustainable development of New Caledonia by developing its nickel and cobalt resources to the highest industrial and environmental standards. Let's be proud of our company!

Let's be proud of our company!

The Prony Resources consortium, an entity with governance and innovative projects
In numbers

A vast industrial facility

Mines
1
mine
Project footprint:
1 900 ha
factory
1
hydrometallurgical
factory
1
storage
pool
for wet residue

Energy

  • 1 coal-fired power station operated by ENERCAL
  • 2 x 50 MW units, one intended for the public grid, the other for supplying the plant

Port

  • 1 bulk carrier dock (179 meters long)
  • 1 quay for freighters (87 meters long)
Nursery

Nursery

  • A capacity of 300,000 plants per year
  • 95% endemic species
Base vie

Base vie

Governance

A Caledonian project

For the first time, Caledonian interests have a majority share of ownership (51% including 30% for the SPMSC and 21% for employees of Prony resources (with 12%) and local populations (with 9%). Trafigura, the world’s third largest trader of raw materials has 19% ownership. Finally, La Compagnie financière de Prony, which brings together industrial investors, clients and the management of Prony Resources, has the remaining 30% of shares.

With a huge deposit of nickel and cobalt, the hydrometallurgical plant of the Great South is reborn in a form fundamentally anchored in the Caledonian land and culture. It has the objective of further developing its immense potential in close collaboration with its employees and all the partners who contribute locally to its development, while respecting the environment and the values of the Territory.
Prony Resources
Un projet calédonien

The advantages of a large factory

Prony Resources, thanks to the recognized skills of New Caledonian chemists and metallurgists, is today one of the three global industrial facilities capable of producing NHC. Composed of 37% nickel and 2 to 3% cobalt, this intermediate product is the raw material for lithium-ion / nickel batteries used in the manufacture of electric vehicles.

With its experience and its industrial robustness, Prony Resources has all the assets to develop a competitive product for international markets and to create a “battery” center of excellence in New Caledonia.

This is a rewarding operation in more than one way since it both contributes to the international ecological transition and creates jobs and revives the Caledonian economy. It also offers New Caledonia a prominent place on the world map of nickel and cobalt producers for electric vehicle batteries.

Organization

The main actors

The SPMSC

Caledonian public interests are supported by the Société de Participations Minières du Sud Calédonien.

The SPMSC is 50% owned by the North and Island provinces, and 50% by the South province. Its capital stake in Prony Resources amounts to 30%.

Fidal Fiducie

12% held by the FCPE (Corporate Mutual Funds) i.e. the employees of the company.

9% held by the FPRESC which designates an entity that will be constituted for the benefit of the population of New Caledonia according to the conditions of the Pact.

The Financial Company of Prony

Currently owned by the entire management team of Prony Resources (51%) and by the industrial partner Agio Global (49%), La Compagnie Financière de Prony is a flexible and scalable financing company open to international investors and clients.

Trafigura

The swiss group TRAFIGURA, a key player in the Prony Resources New Caledonia project and a 19% shareholder, is a world leader in the trading, logistics and distribution of raw materials such as copper, cobalt, aluminum, zinc and nickel.

For more than twenty-five years, Trafigura has provided products essential to everyday life by connecting producers and consumers in a reliable, efficient and responsible manner. Its activities also include mining, storage of petroleum products, metals and minerals, as well as product blending. Finally, Trafigura works to promote and finance projects linked to the energy transition.

Supporting mining assets throughout the world, the trader also has solid experience in investing in mining and metallurgical facilities, such as Prony Resources. In fact, in 2016, the group contributed, together with the Finnish government, to the rescue plan for the then bankrupt Talvivaara mine. Trafigura has taken a minority stake in the capital of Terrafame, the operating company, to which it now provides financial support as well as technical, commercial and marketing support. It was at the initiative of Trafigura that Terrafame decided, at the end of 2018, to launch an investment program to build a nickel and cobalt sulphate plant and to turn to the electric battery market. The transaction strengthened Trafigura's position as a leading supplier of nickel for batteries. This recognition constitutes a real advantage for Prony Resources, which will thus benefit from higher premiums for its products. In addition, Trafigura's in-depth expertise in the production and marketing of NHC is an essential asset for the development of Prony Resources. The South Caledonian plant also intends to take advantage of Terrafame's experience and forge an in-depth technical partnership with it.

Trafigura will occupy two seats on the Board of Directors of the Prony Resources consortium, but its representation will be delegated to the Prony Financial Company.

SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT

Corporate Social
Responsibility Policy

CSR Policy
CSR Policy


4 guidelines
Environmental Responsibility
Environmental Responsibility
Health, Safety and Major Accident Prevention
Health, Safety and Major Accident Prevention
Human Rights and Labour Practices
Human Rights and Labour Practices
Community involvement
Community involvement

General commitments

  • Governance committed to sustainable development
  • Use of the highest environmental standards
  • Involvement with communities
  • Exemplary working relationships and conditions
  • A commitment to our stakeholders
Download our Social Responsibility Policy

Guidelines

Environmental Responsibility

Environmental Responsibility

  • Controlling environmental risks
  • Limiting the ecological footprint and fighting climate change
  • Ensure compliance of activities and facilities
  • Preserving biodiversity

Download the Environmental Responsibility

Health, Safety and Major Accident Prevention

Health, Safety and Major Accident Prevention

  • Providing a healthy and safe work environment
  • Ensure the control of technological and natural risks
  • Providing an effective response to crisis and emergency situations

Download the Health, Safety and Major Accident Prevention Guideline

Human Rights and Labour Practices

Human Rights and Labour Practices

  • Respect human rights and anticipate any form of infringement of universal rights
  • Ensuring fair practices and business ethics
  • Be part of a responsible purchasing policy
  • Honouring people's human and fundamental rights in our working conditions
  • Combating discrimination and ensuring equal opportunities

Download the Human Rights and Working Practice Guideline

Community involvement

Community involvement

  • Ensuring participation and free, prior and informed consent
  • Provide development opportunities
  • Engaging with stakeholders
  • Preserve and safeguard environmental and cultural heritage
  • Seeking positive economic and social benefits

Download the Community Involvement guideline

COMING UP

Caledonian project:
perspectives

First-class industrial and technological partners

Terrafame Oy

European leader in electric nickel for batteries - 30% owned by the economic partner Trafigura - is a Finnish industrialist that integrates, like Prony Resources, a mine and a metallurgical plant.

Terrafame OY was converted three years ago in the production of NHC and expert in bioleaching (metal extraction technique involving microorganisms capable of converting these metals from the solid form to the soluble form), hence Terrafame OY will collaborate with the Usine du Sud on technical and industrial subjects by sharing its transformation experience and its environmental vision (reduction of CO2 emissions).

Tesla

The American multinational is the world's leading manufacturer of electric vehicles.

The 5-year agreement with PRNC will ensure the quality of the NHC product, the reliability and the optimization of the industrial process while guaranteeing supply for Tesla factories in Asia, Europe and America.

Prony Resources intends to maximize the value of its nickel and cobalt by evolving it towards purer forms that are adapted to Tesla's industrial model. Tesla, for its part, brings technical expertise in the development and improvement of the industrial process but also in the exploration of new forms of renewable energy storage. Tesla’s commitment will ensure a prioritization of sustainable development, which is at the heart of its corporate mission.

With this partnership, Prony Resources and New Caledonia are becoming key players in the sustainable mobility revolution.

Mines ParisTech - Supélec

Mines Paris Tech and Centrale Supelec

The result of a partnership between scientific research and the business world, this industrial chair is an ambitious collaborative program based on scientific questioning and a synergy of skills. It aims to improve the performance of PRNC.

Two industrial chairs are set up with Mines Paris Tech and Centrale Supelec.

These prestigious French engineering schools, through their research centers - the Process and Materials Engineering Laboratory for Supelec and the Process Thermodynamics Center for Mines Paris Tech - offer the know-how of eminent researchers and teacher-researchers to strengthen the competitiveness and innovation dynamics of PRNC.

Prony
A major investment

LUCY,
an innovative project that respects the environment

An innovative project

The Lucy project is an innovative technological process aiming to create an installation to dry the wet residue produced by the plant and to optimize the storage capacities of this residue. This method is accompanied by notable advances in terms of technology and safety since it enables a reduction in the chemical concentration of residue by minimizing the stored process water. In addition, it mitigates the level of risk associated with dam technology and wet sludge storage.

Economic issues

The Lucy project offers new perspectives to the South plant by allowing it to perpetuate the Goro mine’s operations. It also provides the industrial facility with additional operating activity.

  • A larger stock of residue

    The Lucy project will optimize the capacity of the current tailings storage area (Basin KO2). Without this investment, the future of the South plant would be compromised since the current tailings site will reach its maximum capacity in 2023.

  • More jobs

    • During Lucy project’s construction phase, the site will employ many local businesses and generate up to 600 jobs.
    • During the operational phase, the tailings dewatering plant will see its operation and maintenance ensured by a permanent team of operators.

Environmental and cultural issues

The South plant has the ambition to become, under the aegis of Prony Resources, an environmental benchmark characterized by a reduced industrial footprint.
Indeed, Lucy will allow a significant reduction in land clearing, thus ensuring better preservation of biodiversity.
The Lucy project will also guarantee better control of water management. Finally, it could give rise to a gradual rehabilitation of the site by covering the residue.
Le Parc à résidus aujourd’hui
Le Parc à résidus aujourd’hui
Après l’assèchement des résidus
Après l’assèchement des résidus
L’usine d’assèchement
L’usine d’assèchement