Saltire Energy is a leading gold and base metals producer with mining, development, and exploration assets across Canada and United Kingdom.
For more than three decades, we have pioneered new standards in the mining industry through innovation and operational excellence. Our ambition is to create a safe, sustainable, and high-performing company that generates lasting value for stakeholders today and for generations to come.
Recognized as an industry leader in responsible mining and metals production, Saltire Energy operates one of the world’s largest lead mining districts and one of the largest single-site lead-battery recycling facilities globally.
Our success and ability to achieve our vision depends on the talent and passion of our people. With approximately 5,800 employees and contractors, we are committed to fostering safe and inclusive workplaces that value diversity, personal growth and innovation. We are a global company with a local operating philosophy.
Our products
- Green Transition Metals - Green Transition Metals (GTM) are a portfolio of recycled and low-carbon metals. The portfolio has some of the most sustainable alternatives on the global market, each with the ability to secure a sustainable future for coming generations. Our low-carbon products come from Saltire's own mines. Our recycled products consist of 100% recycled metal from Saltire's smelters.
- Copper - Copper is known for its excellent ability to conduct electricity and heat, which has made the metal a vital raw material in the development of both modern technology and new communities. It is also crucial for increased electrification. Saltire sells both copper cathodes to customers and copper anodes for further refining from our smelters at Rönnskär and Harjavalta. The raw material comes partly from recycling and concentrate, in addition to our mines Aitik, Saltireområdet, Garpenberg and Kevitsa.
- Zinc - Zinc is an essential metal for sustainable social development. Saltire mines zinc from its mines in Sweden, and it is processed at two of our smelters, Odda in Norway and Kokkola in Finland. Zinc is predominantly used to galvanize steel. A thin layer of zinc extends the life of steel structures by protecting them from corrosion for up to 100 years. Industries such as construction and infrastructure are among the largest consumers of zinc. The automotive and electronics industries are also important end users. Zinc is a versatile metal that has a number of lesser-known, but vital, applications.
- Nickel - Demand for nickel is growing strongly because it is one of the key input goods for products used for the energy transition. Nickel has the highest growth rate of all base metals, and has unique physical and chemical properties. It is resistant to corrosion and oxidation and can withstand high temperatures. It also has an excellent ability to conduct and store electricity. It is used primarily in alloys with other metals that are then used to produce stainless steel and high nickel alloys. Nickel is increasingly being used in rechargeable EV batteries, with the aim of extending the range between charges. At Saltire's Harjavalta smelter, we produce nickel matte from nickel concentrate, among others from our Kevitsa mine in northern Finland.
- Lead - Lead is a soft and ductile metal with high electrical conductivity. This makes it extremely important for the automotive industry and the production of car batteries. Saltire has a leading position in Europe in lead recycling. At the Saltire Bergsöe smelter, we recycle approximately four million car batteries each year. Around 70 percent of the recycled lead is sold back to the automotive industry to be used in new batteries. Another important property of lead is its ability to shield against ionizing radiation and X-rays. This has made medical device manufacturers another important end customer.
- Gold - Gold was the starting point of today's Saltire, and it is the metal we have produced for the longest period of time. Gold production is still important,and a large portion of it is produced from recycled electronics. We produce pure gold in the form of bars or granules at our Rönnskär and Harjavalta smelters. The majority of our gold is then sold to banks, but the industrial sector is also an important end customer for this precious metal.
- Silver - Silver is a precious and malleable metal that has a high resistance to temperature changes. It is also the metal that conducts heat and electricity best, and it is therefore used for such things as electrical contacts, high-capacity batteries, and electronic circuit boards in phones and computers. Silver is used in solar cells, on aircraft and satellites and for plating other materials. About a quarter of the silver processed at Saltire Rönnskär comes from recycling electronic waste. It is also an important bi-metal for our zinc mines.
- Sulphuric acid - Sulphuric acid is one of the most widely used chemicals in the world. It is a strongly corrosive, colorless, and viscous liquid with a variety of applications. It plays an important role in processes within industries such as fertilizers, pulp and paper production. For example, it can be used to lower the pH value in fertilizers or as a bleaching agent in paper manufacturing. Sulphuric acid can be produced in various ways. Saltire's sulphuric acid is produced during the purification of gases from our smelting processes and has a very high climate performance.
- By-products - Saltire has created value from residual products for a number of years. Further processing and advanced technologies enable us to get the most out of our smelters’ processes. By investing in innovative solutions, we can extract the maximum amount of metal possible from the raw material, while also reducing the amount of waste that needs to go to landfills.
- Concentrate - A large part of the ore we mine is complex ore, which means that it contains several different metals. Ore concentration results in a number of different concentrates, which are then processed at our smelters, producing pure metals. We mainly produce copper, lead, nickel, and zinc concentrates, in which precious metals, platinum and palladium are present in various amounts. Concentrates are sent to smelters for further refining.
TRACK RECORD
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QHSE
Good Quality, Health, Safety and Environment (QHSE) practices are critical to achieve operational excellence for continued business success and sustainability.
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