S&B and Quarzwerke in Chinese wollastonite venture

摘要

Greece's bauxite and bentonite giant, S&B Industrial Minerals SA, has entered into an unlikely wollastonite joint venture with Germany's leading silica and kaolin producer, Quarzwerke GmbH, strengthening its foothold in the fast-growing Chinese wollastonite market. The joint venture, called Orykton, has in turn set up a 66:34 JV with a Chinese partner for wollastonite mining and processing in China's Liaoning province. S&B plans to invest 3.5 million euros. in the venture over the next three years. The partnership will enable S&B and Quarzwerke to penetrate the Chinese market further. It also expands Quarzwerke's activities into a new mineral area. "This is a big bet we are placing but we are a very patient company. We are not expecting tremendous success straight away", said Anastasios Kladis, strategic development manager at S&B.