VANCOUVER, BC – BioteQ Environmental Technologies, Inc. (TSX:BQE), a leader in the treatment of metal and sulphate contaminated water, has initiated commissioning of a new plant in Australia at the Mt Gordon mine, owned by Aditya Birla. The $4.3 million plant will recover copper, cobalt, and nickel using BioteQ’s proprietary ChemSulphide™ process to produce saleable metals and clean water. Following metal recovery, the water will be further treated by standard evaporation methods to maintain the mine site’s water balance. BioteQ has put up the capital cost of the plant and is responsible for all operating costs, in exchange for 90% of net revenues from the sale of metals recovered.
Brad Marchant, President and CEO of BioteQ stated, “We are pleased to start commissioning the water treatment plant at Mount Gordon, the first of 5 new construction projects in progress. BioteQ has a team of experienced engineers and operators on site, as well as excellent support from the Mount Gordon mine staff, to ensure the facility operates according to design.”
The commissioning process, where the plant components are tested and optimized, is expected to take 3 to 4 months. When commissioning is complete, the plant will begin processing metal-laden waste water. With a design capacity of 2.2 billion litres of water per year, BioteQ expects the plant to process 1.44 million lbs of copper, 140,000 lbs of cobalt, and 23,000 lbs of nickel annually. Annual operating costs are anticipated to be $3.1 million.
BioteQ Corporate Profile
BioteQ finances, builds, owns and operates water treatment plants for the world’s large mining companies and utilities operators to help them reduce their environmental liabilities while generating revenue from their waste. The company’s commercially proven technology treats acid mine drainage and other metal-laden waste water by sequentially removing metals and sulphate, producing saleable metal products and clean water that can be discharged safely to the environment. BioteQ’s partners include Phelps Dodge (Freeport), Breakwater, CVRD-INCO, Jiangxi Copper, Aditya Birla, Molymet, Xstrata, EPCOR Water Services and the US EPA. BioteQ is headquartered in Vancouver, Canada, and trades on the TSX under the symbol BQE. For additional information, go to www.bqewater.com.
About Aditya Birla
The Aditya Birla Group is one of India’s largest multinational conglomerates, with 85 state-of-the-art manufacturing units and sectoral services that span 20 countries, producing a range of products including viscose staple fibre, metals, cement, viscose filament yarn, branded apparel, carbon black, chemicals, fertilizers, insulators, financial services, telecom, and IT services. The company has 100,000 employees world-wide, and has been judged the best employer in India and among the top 20 in Asia by the Hewitt-Economic Times and Wall Street Journal Study 2007.
Through its subsidiary Hindalco Industries Limited (“Hindalco”), Aditya Birla Group owns a majority interest in Aditya Birla Minerals, with operations at two copper mine sites in Australia at Mount Gordon and Nifty. The company also has exploration rights in the Paterson province of Western Australia and in Queensland.
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On behalf of the Board of Directors
Brad Marchant
The Toronto Stock Exchange has not reviewed and does not accept responsibility for the adequacy or the accuracy of this release.