For the Proposed Expansion of Production Capacity of Refined Silver

PRE-FEASIBILITY REPORT (In terms of provision of EIA Notification 2006) FOR

THE PROPOSED EXPANSION OF PRODUCTION CAPACITY OF REFINED SILVER FROM 600 TPA TO 800 TPA AT PANTNAGAR SILVER PLANT, UTTARAKHAND

Submitted to Ministry of Environment Forest & Climate Change (MoEF & CC) New Delhi

Submitted by

Hindustan Zinc Limited Pantnagar Silver Plant, Pantnagar – 263153

April, 2018

CONTENTS

Chapter Description Page No. No. 1.0 EXECUTIVE SUMMARY 1 2.0 PROJECT INTRODUCTION 2 3.0 SITE ANALYSIS 3 4.0 PROJECT DESCRIPTION 6 5.0 PROPOSED INFRASTRUCTURE 16 6.0 REHABILITATION & RESETTLEMENT (R & R) PLAN 18 7.0 PROJECT IMPLEMENTATION SCHEDULE 18 8.0 COST ESTIMATION 19 9.0 Financial and Social Benefits 19 10.0 Conclusion 19

Expansion of Existing Silver Plant from 600 TPA to 800 TPA Silver Production at Sidcul, Pantnagar, Uttarakhand State

1.0 EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

1.1 Introduction

Hindustan Zinc Limited (HZL) is an India-based company, which is engaged in the mining and smelting of Zinc, Lead and Silver metal in India. The Company's segments are mining and smelting of Zinc, Lead and Silver and Wind energy. The Company's operations include five Zinc-Lead mines, over four Zinc Smelters, a Lead Smelter, a Zinc-Lead Smelter, seven sulphuric acid plants, a silver refinery plant and over six captive power plants in the state of Rajasthan. In addition, the Company also has a rock-phosphate mine in Maton near Udaipur in Rajasthan and Zinc, Lead, Silver processing and refining facilities in the State of Uttarakhand. The Company also has wind power plants in the States of Rajasthan, Gujarat, Karnataka, Tamil Nadu and Maharashtra. It has a metal production capacity of over one million tons per annum with its key Lead-Zinc mines in Rampura Agucha and Sindesar Khurd, and smelting complexes in Debari Chanderiya and Dariba, all in the state of Rajasthan.

HZL is currently operating silver plant of 600 TPA capacity at SIDCUL, Pantnagar, Uttarakhand since 2011. Now, it is proposed to increase silver plant annual capacity from 600 TPA to 800 TPA (monthly 85 Tonnes with overall capacity of 800TPA) in existing plant by increasing percentage of silver in raw material.

1.2 Salient Features of the Project

Sr. No Particulars Description 1 Project Area Existing Silver Plant is located in SIDCUL area. No new land is required for this proposed expansion project 2 Capacity Proposed Production Capacity of refined silver will be extended from 600 TPA to 800 TPA (monthly 85 Tonnes with overall capacity of 800TPA) 3 Process Technology The manufacturing process consist Pyro- metallurgical refining of anode slime in furnaces and hydrometallurgical refining in electrolysis section 4 Raw materials Anode Slime & High Grade Metal (HGM) are the primary raw materials 5 Water Requirement No additional water is required for the proposed expansion. Existing plant water requirement is 325 & its source 3 m /day which is being met from bore wells for which necessary permission is available

Expansion of Existing Silver Plant from 600 TPA to 800 TPA Silver Production at Sidcul, Pantnagar, Uttarakhand State

Sr. No Particulars Description 6 Power Requirement No additional power is required for the expansion. & its source Existing power requirement is 2 MW which is being met from Uttarakhand State Power Corporation Limited 7 Fuel requirement & No additional fuel requirement for this proposed source project Existing fuel requirement is 4500 MT per annum. 500 KVA DG set which will be used for emergency power supply to critical loads. 8 Employment Existing resources is sufficient. There will be ample opportunity for indirect employment. 9 Project Cost Additional capital cost 20 Cr. is involved.

2.0 PROJECT INTRODUCTION

Hindustan Zinc Limited (HZL) is currently operating Silver plant of 600TPA Capacity located at State Industrial Development Corporation Limited (SIDCUL), Pantnagar village, Kichha tehsil, Udham Singh Nagar District, Uttarakhand State. The project site is part of the Notified Industrial Area administered by SIDCUL, Department of Industries, Government of Uttarakhand. Now, the proposed expansion project is to increase Silver plant annual capacity from 600 TPA to 800 TPA (monthly 85 Tonnes with overall capacity of 800 TPA) in existing plant.

The existing project of M/s HZL accorded Environment Clearance for 500 TPA refined silver production by SEAC/SEIAA, Uttarakhand vide letter no. EC- 51/10/265 dated 16.03.2010. The EC was amended for 500 TPA to 600 TPA refined silver production by MOEF&CC vide letter no F. No. IA—J-11011/170/2017-IA-II-(I) dated 29.06.2017. As per the Schedule of EIA notification published on 14th September 2006 & its amendments, our proposed expansion is listed at SI. No 3(a) under category “B“. Since the SEAC, Uttarakhand is not yet constituted; the proposal is submitted to MOEF&CC.

The proposed unit located at Pantnagar village, Kichha tehsil, Udham Singh Nagar District, Uttarakhand State. HZL Pantnagar Silver Plant was established in 2010-11, in 10 ha of land is part of Notified Industrial Area administered by SIDCUL, Department of Industries, Government of Uttarakhand. The proposed expansion will not require any additional land

Expansion of Existing Silver Plant from 600 TPA to 800 TPA Silver Production at Sidcul, Pantnagar, Uttarakhand State

for the project. No forestland involved. The entire land has already been acquired for the project.

2.1 Nature of the Project

The proposed expansion project in existing plant is to increase silver plant annual capacity from 600 TPA to 800 TPA (monthly 85 Tonnes with overall capacity of 800 TPA). This plant shall treat the “Anode Slime” & “HGM, (High grade Metal)” produced as a by-product in the HZL Lead smelters in Rajasthan to recover the silver. The existing plant shall also have the necessary utilities and auxiliary support system like power distribution, fuel oil storage & distribution, compressed air, water treatment system etc.

2.2 Objectives of Project

To enhance the plant silver production capacity with auxiliary facilities:

 Silver plant capacity of 800 TPA;  Input is increasing due to increase in percentage of silver content in raw material; and  To increase monthly production quantity from 60 MT to 85 MT refined silver with an overall annual capacity of 800 TPA.

2.3 Need of the Project

India is a net importer of silver and is used in various industrial applications like electrical contacts & conductors, clinical applications, photographic applications etc. However the primary consumption of silver in India is for ornamental purposes. Silver produced from the proposed project shall be primarily supplied in Indian market.

Looking at the market opportunities & economy of scale, it is proposed to increase the plant capacity from 600 TPA to 800 TPA refined silver ingot (60 MT to 85 MT per month with overall annual capacity of 800 TPA).

3.0 SITE ANALYSIS

3.1 Location of Site The project is located at State Industrial Development Corporation Limited (SIDCUL), Pantnagar village, Kichha tehsil, Udham Singh Nagar district, Uttarakhand state. The project site is part of the Notified Industrial Area administered by SIDCUL, Department of Industries, Government of Uttarakhand. Site is located at the intersection of latitude 29020’7”N and longitude 79024’01”E. Study area map is shown in Figure-1.

Expansion of Existing Silver Plant from 600 TPA to 800 TPA Silver Production at Sidcul, Pantnagar, Uttarakhand State

3.2 Meteorological Data

The climatic conditions of the region as available are as follows: Maximum of mean daily temperature : 40.70C Minimum of mean daily temperature : 9.90C Relative humidity : 22 % to 86 % Total rainfall : 1058.1 mm Prevalent wind direction : W (annual)

3.2.1 Available Land Area

The Proposed expansion is within the existing plant premises of 10 ha. No new land is required for this proposed project.

3.2.2 Road Connectivity

The site has good connectivity with the existing plant road network. NH-87 is about 0.8 km from project site in southern direction.

3.2.3 Rail Connectivity

The nearest railway station is Pantnagar which is about 10 km from the plant.

Expansion of Existing Silver Plant from 600 TPA to 800 TPA Silver Production at Sidcul, Pantnagar, Uttarakhand State

79° 20' 79° 25' 79° 30' N

Matkota Datiyal Khari Kulha T A N D A P.F

Tilpur JOR NADI Majra Bhupsingh Lalpuri Bhatbhaj Bhajpuri Madhpur 29° 29° Jaganpuri 05' Haripura 05' Madanpura Charanpur Dhimria Block Praphullanagar D H I M R I P.F Motipur No1 Kagaren Nadi G A N G A P U R P A T I A P.F Radhakanthpur Shrirampur Motipur Lakhipur Jagadishpur Khairiya Nadi ChandanpurNo2 Upper Bhakra Channel Durgapur No2 Shyapkhatani khatta Dineshpur JagadishpurChandipur Channel Sundarpur Netajinagar Baigul Nadi Kalinagar Buksaura Jainagar Pattharchatta Nadi Panchananpur Haldi 10 Km Jalnagar Anand Khera Vijaynagar Udaipur Pattharchatta Aerodrame No1 Anand Khera Chitranjanpur No2 Munshi Farm No2 Chitranjanpur No1 Chhantarpur Panthnagar Basanthpur Agricultural Haridaspur University Rampura Arjunpur Haldi Nadi Mohanpur No1 Vijaynagar Minor Dharampur Mohanpur No2 Matkota Farm Phulwa Nadi Shivpur Dhimri Nadi Amarpur Fauji Matkota 29° 29° 00' Jafarpur NH-87 00' Jahangirpur Sampathpur Phulsungha Bhagawanthpur Bengali Colony Narpatnagar NH-74 Gangapur Pratappur Kiratpur Rudrapur Channel RudrapurFIGURE-1 Phulsunghi Baraur N

Samadpuri Channel Maneharkhera STUDY RampuraAREA MAP Narayanpur Bhagalya Nadi Bhadaipura Bagwara SCALE Dibdiba NH-87 Bhamrola 1 0 1 2 KM 79° 20' 79° 25' 79° 30' LEGEND Plant Site Settlements Road Railway Line Nadi Nallah

The baseline monitoring study has been started in the current summer season i.e. March 2018 to May 2018 for the proposed expansion project. Environmental Setting SN Particulars Details 1 Location Plot No 2 & 3, Sector 14, IIE, State Industrial Development Corporation Ltd (SIDCUL) Village Pantnagar Tehsil Kichha District Udham Singh Nagar State Uttarakhand 2 Latitude 290 02’ 07” N 3 Longitude 790 24’ 01” E 4 Elevation above Mean Sea Level 220 m 5 Climatic Conditions as per IMD, Pantnagar-

Expansion of Existing Silver Plant from 600 TPA to 800 TPA Silver Production at Sidcul, Pantnagar, Uttarakhand State

Temperature Max. 41.20C Min. 1.20C Relative Humidity Maximum- 87%, Minimum- 30% Wind Speed range 0.20 to 11.0 m/s Predominant wind direction W and E Average Annual rainfall 1375 mm 6 Nearest Highway NH-87 (0.8 km, S) 7 Nearest Railway Station Haldi (5.9 km, E) 8 Nearest airport Pantnagar (6.3 km, E) 9 Ecologically sensitive areas (National None within 10 km Parks / Wild life sanctuaries / bio- sphere reserves) 10 Reserved / Protected Forest Dhimri P F (2.2 km, NNE) Gangapur Patiya P F (2.7 km, NE) Tanda PF (8.9 km, NE) 11 Nearest village Pattharchatta (0.8 km, SE) 12 Densely populated or built-up area Rudrapur (6 km, S) 13 Archaeologically important places/ None within 10km Monuments 14 List of Industries SIDCUL industrial area 15 Seismicity The project area falls under seismic zone-IV as per IS: 1893 (Part-1): 2002. 16 Nearest water bodies Dhimri nadi (3.0 km, W) Baigul nadi (3.1 km, ESE)

4.0 PROJECT DESCRIPTION

The proposed project is an expansion of the existing Pantnagar silver plant at SIDCUL, Pantnagar. The plant map showing the general location, project boundary & project site layout with coordinates is shown in following Figure-2.

4.1 Raw Material

Anode Slime & HGM is the primary raw material for the proposed silver refinery. The same will be transported from the smelter owned by HZL or bought from other sources.

BASIC RAW MATERIAL– Silver Plant

Raw Material Existing Additional Total Requirement Requirement Anode Slime/Dore Silver 2900 700 3600 High Grade Metal 1080 1080

Expansion of Existing Silver Plant from 600 TPA to 800 TPA Silver Production at Sidcul, Pantnagar, Uttarakhand State

4.2 Process

4.2.1 Silver - Introduction

Anode slime from lead electro refining plant of HZL’s existing smelter will be transported to the silver plant for further refining. Also, HGM from HZL smelter will be transported and refined in the electrolysis section along with the silver rich alloy which is produced from anode slime through pyro-metallurgical route. Both these raw materials are traded in the market and hence depending on requirements these raw materials will be sourced from open market. The overall process block diagram of the silver plant is as below:

4.2.2 Raw Material Handling

The anode slime transported from HZL smelter by trucks are unloaded in the raw material storage bay inside the refinery building. The other flux materials used for the process are also stored in separate bays in the raw material storage area.

4.2.3 Noble Furnace – 1st Stage of Pyro Refining

The steps followed in the Noble Furnace smelting include:

 Charging  Melting  oxidizing by air blast and slag formation  Precipitation  Tapping and noble lead discharge

FIGURE-2 PLANT LAYOUT

Expansion of Existing Silver Plant from 600 TPA to 800 TPA Silver Production at Sidcul, Pantnagar, Uttarakhand State

Anode Slime Flux

Air Noble Furnace Oxidation Slag Transported to HZL Smelter for re-cycling LDO/HSD

Noble Lead Silver Anode Slime Flux

Off Gas Oxidation

Prophase Slag Air Cupel Furnace Cooling Duct HGM LDO/HSD

Junker Furnace Bismuth Concentrate Bag Filter VRF Zinc & Dross

Off Gas Copper Matte Antimony Concentrate Silver Alloy Cooling Duct BBOC Furnace Dore Silver/VRF M

Silver Anode Bag Filter

Electrolytic Cell House - - - - -Silver Nitrate Antimony Concentrate Silver Powder Induction Furnace

Spent Solution To ETP Refined Silver

The proportioned charges will be fed in batches of regular interval. The melting stage will last for 12 hours. Compressed air is blown into the molten mass through iron pipes to stir the bath and promote the oxidization and slag formation. At this time the slag is divided into two layers. The upper layer is composed of metal silicates and antimonite which are of high fluidity. The lower layer contains silver with low fluidity, and therefore it is called sticky slag.

Expansion of Existing Silver Plant from 600 TPA to 800 TPA Silver Production at Sidcul, Pantnagar, Uttarakhand State

After the sticky slag is removed, the noble lead is blown with air to volatize the impurities such as copper, bismuth, arsenic and antimony. After this oxidation of impurities and its removal, the noble lead is tapped from the furnace.

Highly fluid lead slag, it shall be returned to the blast furnace and fuming furnace system to recover lead. And since the silver content in sticky slag and oxidizing slag is high, they are recycled in the noble lead furnace. The volatized impurities from the noble furnace contains high antimony, the collected “antimony concentrate” is sold to antimony producers and allied industries.

Light diesel oil/HSD is used as the fuel for noble lead furnace to maintain the temperature. The compressed air for smelting is supplied by a high temperature centrifugal fan.

4.2.4 Cupel Furnace

The noble lead produced from the noble furnace is sent for further treatment to cupel furnace. Two cupel furnaces are installed to match the production of Noble furnace.

The niter and silver anode slime will be measured and charged into the cupel furnace. The process in the cupel furnace includes:

 Charging;  Melting;  Blowing;  Oxidizing and slag formation;  Copper removal; and  Silver alloy discharge.

Charge fed into the furnace is melted and air is blown through the pipes and the charge is oxidized. During this stage sequentially Lead is oxidized, Antimony concentrate, Bismuth Concentrate is produced. Then the flux material niter is added to generate molecular oxygen, which is used to produce “copper matte” by oxidizing copper.

After removal of antimony, bismuth and copper the 97% pure silver alloy is produced. Primary oxidizing slag which contains lead is recycled in the noble lead furnace to recover lead. The bismuth concentrate, copper matte, antimony concentrate will be sold to allied industries which use these materials. The silver alloy is cast into silver alloy anode plate in the anode plate casting machine and then sent to the silver electro refining section. The fuel of cupel furnace is Light diesel oil. The compressed air used in the smelting is supplied from the high pressure centrifugal fan.

Expansion of Existing Silver Plant from 600 TPA to 800 TPA Silver Production at Sidcul, Pantnagar, Uttarakhand State

Direct current is connected to the silver electrolyzing cell. The product is pure silver of 99.95% grade or above. If there is precious metal in the silver alloy, it will concentrate in the silver anode slime.

4.2.5 Junker Furnace

The intended purpose of the coreless induction furnace system is the melting and condensing of a ternary alloy of Zn+Ag+Pb. The installation is used to separate zinc from the ternary alloy. Separation of the zinc is made possible by the different vapour pressure characteristics of the elements present. The process is promoted and accelerated by performing the evaporation procedure in vacuum. As the result is required to be chemically pure zinc the process must be performed in the absence of oxygen. Zinc has a high affinity to oxygen and would quickly oxidise into ZnO. The process comprises the following steps: 1. Melting down of the ternary alloy 2. First evacuation of the melt 3. Purging with protective gas with the vacuum pump running 4. Evacuation to the process vacuum 5. Zinc condenses and flows from the hot melt into a cold collecting pot. 6. The incoming zinc vapour condenses and heats the collecting pot (condenser) to above the zinc melting temperature but below the zinc evaporating temperature. 7. After condensation the furnace vacuum is relieved and the collecting pot (condenser) tapped. 8. The metal bath remaining in the furnace (liquid) is tapped into suitable collecting containers. 9. The process starts again from item 1.

4.2.6 BBOC Furnace

BBOC furnace is bottom below cupellation furnace is advance technology of cupel furnace after cupel furnace and junker furnace output comes this silver alloy charged in BBOC furnace and again oxidation started through bottom side with auto feeding the lance with controlled manner of oxygen flow. After charging and melting the silver alloy oxygen blowing given for 1 hours than slag tapped and this process continue till slag formation stopped. Than we have to put lead shot in BBOC furnace and again blowing done for 1 hours than silver purity reach approx. 99.2% to 99.5% than cast the anode approx. 12 kg each and send it to electro reefing section.

4.2.7 Silver Electrorefining – Hydrometallurgy Section

The silver refining includes:

Expansion of Existing Silver Plant from 600 TPA to 800 TPA Silver Production at Sidcul, Pantnagar, Uttarakhand State

 Electrolyte generation;  Silver electro refining;  Treatment of the silver anode slime;  Spent solution treatment; and  Melting & casting etc.

The main raw material of silver electro refining is the silver alloy plate from the pyro- metallurgical refining and auxiliary material includes: nitric acid, ethyne, sodium carbonate, niter, sodium borate, charcoal, sodium chloride etc.

In the electro-refining process the anode is the impure silver alloy plate. The cathode is made of stainless steel plate. The aqueous solution of nitric acid and silver nitrate is used as electrolyte.

Acetylene is used to coat the mould surface and form a layer before the silver casting, which is favorable to the mould release. Charcoal lump, sodium carbonate, niter and borax are also added to purify the electrolyte. Sodium chloride is used to treat the waste solution of the silver electro refining to recover the silver.

During the electrolysis silver powder is obtained which is washed and dried and further treated in the medium frequency furnace.

Medium frequency induction furnace is used to melt the silver powder at 1150oC ~ 1250 oC and cast into silver ingots of 31 kg each. When casting the silver bullion, proper amount

of niter, sodium carbonate (NaCO3), borax and charcoal are added.

Finally the ingots will be weighed with electric balance and sent to the safe storage.

4.2.8 Dust Collection

According to the off-gas conditions and characteristic of the dust, the flow of dust collection is determined as below:

Noble furnace→Cooling duct→Bag filter→Fan→Discharge Cupel furnace→Cooling duct→Bag filter→Fan→Discharge

The off-gas of cupel furnace and noble furnace is of small quantity of off-gas, having low dust content. The off-gas is cooled first in cooling ducts and then filtered by the bag filter before let out to atmosphere.

Expansion of Existing Silver Plant from 600 TPA to 800 TPA Silver Production at Sidcul, Pantnagar, Uttarakhand State

The collected dust from the cooling duct and bag filter are conveyed by the drag chain conveyors and rotary valve before it is collected in dust pots.

4.2.9 Hygiene Ventilation

In the silver plant pyro section (Cupel furnace and Noble Furnace), there may be occasional fugitive emissions from the furnace tap holes & launders. To ensure the good operating & working condition, well designed hygiene ventilation system is provided. Industrial fans are used in the furnace area to lower the ambient temperature and improve the working conditions for operators.

Nitrogen oxide is formed when silver electrolyte is prepared. The NOx generated from the preparation tank is removed by effective hygiene system. This NOx containing gas is passed through a fiber glass purification tower where alkali solution (sodium hydroxide solution) is sprayed to absorb the NOx in the off-gas. Then it is let out to the atmosphere. To improve efficiency, double-stage absorption tower is adopted and the total absorption efficiency is above 98%.

4.2.10 Cooling Water System

Soft water is used in the cooling water system of silver refinery. The return water from the equipment are by gravity and is collected in hot water pool before it is pumped back to cooling tower. Process flow of circulating water:

A medium temperature counter flow glass reinforced plastic cooling tower is selected with change in temperature Δt=100C.

4.2.11 Water Balance

No additional water is required for the proposed expansion. Existing plant water requirement is 325 m3/day which is being met from bore wells for which necessary

Expansion of Existing Silver Plant from 600 TPA to 800 TPA Silver Production at Sidcul, Pantnagar, Uttarakhand State

permission is available. The water balance diagram of the proposed Pantnagar Silver Refinery is given below: Water flow Diagram HZL-PMP-Pantnagar

Ground water from Borewell 325 m3

Water reservoir Water for gardening (15 m3)

Filter tank Industrial use Cooling tower for Evaporation/drift (260 m3) Zinc & Lead plant losses for cooling purposes

(190 m3) Cooling tower for Domestic use for RO & DM plant silver plant for drinking /cleaning (50 m3) WTP reject for cooling purposes /washing purposes gardening purposes (20 m3) (50m3) (25 m3)

STP plant Evaporation/drift (25 m3) losses Zinc/silver For cooling plant inductor purposes in

cooling (24 DG set (0.3

m3) m3)

STP Treated water

for gardening Evaporation Evaporation purposes (25 m3)

Cooling Tower blow down

4.3 Annual Production

Units in TPA

Expansion of Existing Silver Plant from 600 TPA to 800 TPA Silver Production at Sidcul, Pantnagar, Uttarakhand State

Unit Existing Additional Proposed Total Quantity Quantity Products Refined Silver 600 TPA 200 800 By-products Antimony Concentrate 1400 400 1800 Bismuth Concentrate 140 220 360 Copper Matte 140 - 140 Oxidation Slag 840 410 1250 Silver Nitrate 25 - 25 Silver Anode Slime/ Silver - 10 10 Sand Lead SLAG - 450 450 VRF Zinc - 650 650 VRF Zinc Dross - 100 100

4.4 Major Design Facilities

Unit Existing Additional Proposed Total Capacities Capacity Noble 1 No (14 TPD) - 1 No (14 TPD ) fired by Furnace LDO/HSD/PNG/FO/LSHS Cupel 2 No (2.5 TPD) - 2 No (2.5 TPD each) fired by Furnace LDO/HSD/PNG/FO/LSHS Induction 3 No (0.6 TPD) 3 No (2 X1 TPD + 3 No (2 X1 TPD + 1X1.5 TPD) Furnace 1X1.5 TPD) Junker - 1 No (4 TPD) 1 No (4 TPD) Furnace BBOC - 1 No (4 TPD) 1 No (4 TPD) Furnace

4.5 Consumables

The requirement of other consumables (fuels & process chemicals) required is given below:

Expansion of Existing Silver Plant from 600 TPA to 800 TPA Silver Production at Sidcul, Pantnagar, Uttarakhand State

CONSUMABLES PER ANNUM

Consumables Unit Quantity Coke MT 87 Soda Ash MT 250 Salt Peter (Potassium Nitrate) MT 89 Nitric Acid MT 50 Ethyne MT 10 Charcoal MT 20 Sodium Chloride MT 15 Borax MT 15 LDO/HFO/LNG/FO/PNG/LSHS MT 4500 Calcium Fluoride MT 40 Sulphuric Acid MT 5 Lime MT 5

5.0 PROPOSED INFRASTRUCTURE

5.1 Industrial Area (Processing Area)

DG set of 500 KVA capacity is existing for emergency/backup power requirement. Apart from the DG set the following common utilities already exist,

1. Water treatment plant; 2. Fuel oil storage and handling; 3. Compressed air & instrument air system; and 4. Power receiving and distribution system.

5.2 Residential Area (Non Processing Area)

The project is located in SIDCUL industrial plot. Hence, not applicable.

5.3 Industrial Waste Management

The contributors for the process effluents are:

 Wastewater from spent electrolyte purification section; and  Wastewater from the NOx absorption tower in electro-refining section.

The quantity of these process effluents are minimum (approximately 1 m3/day). The whole process is on batch production. Hence, the generation of this effluent is intermittent and of

Expansion of Existing Silver Plant from 600 TPA to 800 TPA Silver Production at Sidcul, Pantnagar, Uttarakhand State

low volume. These effluents are securely collected in effluent collection tanks and transported safely to CETP, SIDCUL.

The other sources of waste water generation are:

 Cooling tower bleeds;  De-Mineralized Water plant effluents; and  Diesel Generator house wastewater.

These effluents will be comparatively less contaminated and not the process effluents. Effluents will be used in green belt development after necessary chemical dosing and neutralization.

5.4 Solid Waste Management

From the silver plant operations, there will be no solid waste generation which will require long term storage. The waste oil, used oil, oil soaked cotton waste, filter and grease will be the hazardous waste generated from this operation which shall be stored in properly sealed containers and kept on separate concrete floor and will be sold to registered recyclers.

5.5 Power Requirement & Supply / Source

Source of Power

No additional power required for this proposed project. Existing Power of 2 MW required for the plant is being met from Uttarakhand State Power Corporation Limited (UPCL).

Emergency Generator

Existing 500 KVA DG set will be used for emergency power supply to cater to critical loads.

5.6 Auxiliary Services

The auxiliary services planned for the smelter complexes are:

 Cathode storage yard;  Water receipt treatment and distribution;  Water treatment plant;  Laboratory;  Stores;  Finished goods godown;

Expansion of Existing Silver Plant from 600 TPA to 800 TPA Silver Production at Sidcul, Pantnagar, Uttarakhand State

 LDO storage;  Heavy fuel storage; and  Instrument air/plant air supply unit.

5.7 Electrical System

The design is based on the following:

(i) Reliability of service; (ii) Safety to personnel and equipment during operation and maintenance; (iii) Ease of maintenance and operational convenience; (iv) Maximum interchangeability of equipment and facility for future addition; and (v) Suitability for applicable environmental factors.

Relevant codes and standards of BIS, Indian Electricity rules & regulations, petroleum rules (GOI), Fire insurance regulations, Tariff Advisory Committee Regulations and regulations laid out by electrical inspectorate have been followed.

5.8 Fire Alarm System

Fire Alarm System comprises of individual glass type manual points provided at strategic locations within the access of 60 m, automatic sensors, smoke detectors, hooters etc. The system shall be designed to provide audio-visual indication at the main panel located in the security room and zonal panel in control room.

6.0 REHABILITATION & RESETTLEMENT (R & R) PLAN

The proposed project will be set up within the existing plant premises, thus no additional land is required. Hence, R & R plan is not envisaged for the project.

7.0 PROJECT IMPLEMENTATION SCHEDULE

Project will be implemented within 12 months after obtaining all necessary clearances.

8.0 COST ESTIMATION

Expansion of Existing Silver Plant from 600 TPA to 800 TPA Silver Production at Sidcul, Pantnagar, Uttarakhand State

Capital cost for increasing the capacity is 20 Crores and production will be managed by existing resources.

9.0 Financial and Social Benefits

Proposed expansion project will result in growth of the surrounding areas by increasing indirect employment opportunities in the region including ancillary development and supporting infrastructure. Special emphasis on financial and social benefits is being/ will be given to the local people.

Uttarakhand state will get revenues in terms of taxes and local people will get direct & indirect employment. Business opportunities for local community will be available like transport of material to market, maintenance & house-keeping contract work, supplying goods, food to people etc. In addition, lots of CSR activities are being / will be carried out by the company.

10.0 Conclusion

Proposed expansion project will result in conservation of natural resources, growth of the surrounding areas by increased indirect employment opportunities in the region including ancillary development and supporting infrastructure. Special emphasis on Financial and Social benefits will be given to the local people. Development of social amenities will be in the form of medical facilities, education to under privileged and creation of self-help groups. No adverse effect on environment is envisaged as proper mitigation measure will be taken up for the proposed expansion units.