7
« on: June 16, 2008, 07:01:59 PM »
MOSCOW. June 16 - Nearly 3,000 tonnes of copper
belonging to MMC Norilsk Nickel, a key Russian nonferrous and precious
metal company, ended up on the bottom of a northern Siberian river on
Sunday as a barge sank while the metal was being loaded on it, a Norilsk
Nickel spokeswoman said on Monday.
The barge's hull broke through as copper was being put on the boat
in the Dudinka port, which lies in the lower reaches of the Yenisei
River. The barge sank, taking 2,822 tonnes of copper to the bottom with
it.
Kovalyova said no one had been hurt and that the loading had
involved no departure from technical rules.
The copper would be raised from the bottom when the current
seasonal high water level in the Yenisei goes down, she said.
Since the site of the accident was a river port, it would not delay
the loading of metal on sea ships to be carried to other parts of Russia
or abroad, the spokeswoman said.
The copper that sank "was intended for the domestic market, the
schedule of supplies will not be disrupted," she said.
Kovalyova said the Dudinka port would go back to its regular
loading and unloading routine when its facilities are restored by mid-
July spring after seasonal flooding.
Norilsk Nickel is the world's leading producer of nickel and
palladium, Russia's top gold producer, and a major producer of copper,
platinum and cobalt.
Show Posts
