Uralkali has completed an important stage of the expansion project for the chemical enrichment plant of its Mine 4. Equipment was installed and commissioning operations were started at the new dissolution unit of the enrichment plant, which is the initial part of the process chain of MOP production. It is planned by the end of 2009 to build the refining and vacuum crystallization units. The company expects to complete the expansion project for its enrichment facilities, which also includes the reconstruction of the crushing and drying units, by 2011. When completed, the project will result in a more than twofold increase in the annual capacity of the Mine 4 enrichment plant, up to 3 million tonnes of MOP. Total investments will exceed 9 billion rubles.

The dissolution unit project was developed by a Perm-based R&D company, Galurgia. The general contractor for construction and equipment installation is Uralenergostroy, Dobryanka, Perm Territory. Renowned German companies EMDE (dissolving agents), KCH (pipelines), and KLEPPER (metering and automatic equipment) were selected as suppliers. Investments in the construction and equipment for the project amounted to over 1.3 billion rubles.

The construction of the dissolution unit used modern materials and state-of-the-art engineering solutions designed to improve product quality and ensure reliable performance of equipment. The new dissolution unit consists of two lines that can operate independently. This will allow any repair work to be done without interruptions in the process flow. For the first time, special plastic was used here for pipelines to make them resistant to aggressive media and have better characteristics and durability than similar iron, titanium, or stainless steel pipes. Additionally, the new unit will have frequency control of its prime equipment and pumps, which will reduce energy costs of MOP production.

Commissioning tests of production loads will go on at the dissolution unit for three months.

The new unit has a staff of 63 people. They are mostly Mine 1 employees who were transferred to Mine 4 due to the flooding of Mine 1.