By-products

We extract copper sulphate from our smelters in Rönnskär and Harjavalta. At Rönnskär we also extract zinc clinker and iron sand from copper production slag – two examples of further materials processing.

Harjavalta and Rönnskär also produce copper telluride in the form of a black powder, which is sold on for processing into pure tellurium, and selenium, also as a black powder sold on for further processing. 

Copper Sulphate: Blue crystals sold as reagents to the mining industry.

Zinc Clinker: Yellowish powder, which is a slag product from copper production. Metallic zinc is extracted from the powder.

Iron Sand: Black, coarse powder. Very good insulation and drainage properties which makes it very suitable as a filler in road and building construction. 

Copper Telluride: Black powder used as an alloying substance in the steel industry and rubber production.

Selenium: Black powder used in pharmaceuticals, for soil improvement, paint manufacturing, staining and destaining glass and in the steel industry.

Nickel Matte: An intermediate product based on nickel concentrates that we sell to external customers for further processing to pure metals. We produce around 25,000 to 30,000 tonnes of nickel matte annually.

Crude Nickel Sulphate: Boliden produces around 1,000-2,000 tonnes of nickel in the form of crude nickel sulphate, a yellow powder that is an important by-product of copper production.

PGM concentrates:  PGM (Platinum Group Metals) is a collective term for six elements – Palladium (Pd), Platinum (Pt), Rhodium (Rh), Iridium (Ir), Ruthenium (Ru), Osmium (Os) – grouped closely together in the periodic table. Because they are precious metals, platinum group metals have great resistance to corrosion and oxidation and are used to a great extent in catalytic converters in the automotive industry. Platinum and Palladium are also used extensively in jewellery and the electronics industry.