PyroGenesis announces improved economics for its Fumed Silica Reactor project
by CM Staff
According to HPQ’s release, “the study unveiled its robust economic potential, emphasizing potential EBITDA margins three times higher than the industry average of 20% and a capital investment 93% less than that required for building a conventional Fumed Silica plant”.
MONTREAL — PyroGenesis Canada Inc., a company that develops, manufactures and commercializes advanced plasma processes and sustainable solutions which are geared to reduce greenhouse gases (GHG) and address environmental pollutants, announces that the recent completion of an internal economic and technical study produced more favorable results than were previously indicated by HPQ for its Fumed Silica Reactor (FSR) technology project.
According to HPQ’s release, “the study unveiled its robust economic potential, emphasizing potential EBITDA margins three times higher than the industry average of 20% and a capital investment 93% less than that required for building a conventional Fumed Silica plant”.
The FSR, another plasma-based process developed by PyroGenesis, converts quartz into commercial-grade fumed silica (or Pyrogenic Silica) in a single and eco-friendly step. By eliminating the use of harmful chemicals generated by conventional methods, the groundbreaking FSR approach, if successfully applied on a commercial scale, will contribute to the repatriation of silica production to North America.
With respect to the results of this latest study, the Company, in conjunction with management of HPQ Polvere (the HPQ subsidiary which owns the FSR technology), used a rough order of magnitude study regarding the cost of building the first 1,000 TPY Fumed Silica Reactor. HPQ’s management then used selling prices for the Fumed Silica and potential operating costs from information derived from third party sources and publicly available data.
The salient points of the internal economic study indicate that the FSR will have:
- Capex between US$ 9.00 and US$ 10.00 cost per Kg of annual capacity
- Energy consumptions between 10 –15 KWh per Kg of Fumed Silica
- EBITDA margins between 60% and 65%
- Payback period per 1,000 TPY Reactor of around 1.7 years
“If these salient points of the internal economic study are proven out, then HPQ will be able to build facilities with significantly lower CAPEX and energy consumption while generating significant margins,” said Mr. P. Peter Pascali, President and CEO of PyroGenesis. “The payback of approx. 1.7 years will enable them to roll out significantly faster and with less capital. Not only does this speak for significant financial gains, but given this revolutionary plasma-based technology eliminates all harmful chemicals, it is environmentally friendly. It also underscores PyroGenesis’ commitment to sustainable development. This once again, reflects the potential of HPQ Polvere’s fumed silica reactor which we developed, and aligns perfectly with our commitment to environmental responsibility. Conventional fumed silica processes, which rely on silicon metal (Si) as raw material, not only have a significant carbon footprint of around 9.5 tonnes of CO2 equivalent per tonne of fumed silica, but also present complex process challenges which include, but are not limited to, using hazardous materials.”
