Samta breaks ground on nonferrous ingot plant in Morocco

The Mumbai-based Samta Group and its Samta Metals & Alloys (SMA) business unit have broken ground on a $70 million recycled-content copper rod and aluminum ingot plant in Kenitra, Morocco.

A late May post on the Samta Group LinkedIn page calls it Morocco’s first copper and aluminum recycling plant, noting it will be located in the Atlantic Free Zone in Kenitra.

“This milestone project not only reinforces Samta Group’s global commitment to green innovation but also positions Morocco as a key player in nonferrous metal recycling in the region,” Samta Group says.

The company expects the 394,000-square-foot plant to be operational by 2026 and to be able to melt 46,000 tons of aluminum and copper scrap annually, producing green ingots and copper rods for key industries.

A presentation posted to the Samta Group website predicts the scrap requirements on a five-year horizon will process 19,200 tons of copper-bearing scrap and 27,540 tons of aluminum scrap annually.

The refined, recycled-content aluminum ingots and copper rod coils produced in Kenitra will cater to the local automotive, aeronautical and energy industries, according to the firm.

On the supply side, Samta Group expects to enter into agreements with the "largest industrial generators” of aluminum and copper scrap in the Atlantic Free Zone.

In a comment that may hit as a sour note with metals traders, Samta adds its domestic Moroccan supply of scrap will be supported by the government’s to implement a ban on scrap exports to support domestic processing.

On the ingot and rod sales side, Samta says its plant will produce electrolytic-grade copper cathode (99.99 percent pure) to be converted into 6-to-19-millimeter copper rod. The plant initially will make aluminum-silicon alloy ingots for the automotive industry.