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TUNGSTEN

Indian Minerals Yearbook 2013

(Part- II : Metals & Alloys)

52nd Edition

TUNGSTEN

(FINAL RELEASE)

GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF MINES

INDIAN BUREAU OF MINES

Indira Bhavan, Civil Lines, NAGPUR 440 001

PHONE/FAX NO. (0712) 2565471 PBX : (0712) 2562649, 2560544, 2560648

E-MAIL : cme@ibm.gov.in Website: www.ibm.gov.in

May, 2015

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TUNGSTEN

18 Tungsten

Tungsten is a vital metal of strategic importance.The chief sources of tungsten are mineralsscheelite (CaWO4) and wolframite [(Fe,Mn)WO4]which are predominantly hydrothermal in origin.Tungsten has a melting point of 3422o C, the highestof all metals and it is resistant to all acids at ordinarytemperatures. It is elastic, ductile and has high tensilestrength and can be drawn into very thin wires. Thedomestic requirements of tungsten and its productsare met mainly through imports. A significant amountof tungsten is recovered through recycling oftungsten scrap products.

RESOURCESThe total resources of tungsten ore in

the country, as per UNFC system, as on 1.4.2010has been estimated at 87.4 million tonnes with WO3content of 1,42,094 tonnes. All these resources areplaced under 'remaining resources' category.

Resources of Tungsten bearing minerals are mainlydistributed in Karnataka (42%), Rajasthan (27%),Andhra Pradesh (17%) and Maharashtra (9%). Theremaining 5% resources are in Haryana, Tamil Nadu,Uttarakhand and West Bengal (Table - 1).

At Degana, Rajasthan, WO3 value in veindeposits varies from 0.25 to 0.54% while in graveldeposit, it is on an average of 0.04%. In Sirohi deposit,Rajasthan, WO3 content ranges from 0.02 to 2.2%.In West Bengal, Bankura deposit contains an averageof 0.1% WO3. In Kuhi-Khobana-Agargaon belt, GSIhas identified seven mineralised zones in Sakoli basinin Bhandara and Nagpur districts, Maharashtra. Theanalysis showed 0.01 to 0.19% WO3

in Kuhi block, 0.13to 0.38% WO3 in Khobana block and 0.48% WO3 inPardi-Dahegaon-Pipalgaon block. The deposit containsan average of 0.17% WO3 . Gold ore at Mysore mine ofBGML in Karnataka has been reckoned as a potentialsource of scheelite. The tailing dumps at Kolar GoldFields contain about 0.035 to 0.18% WO3.

EXPLORATION & DEVELOPMENTReconnaissance stage investigation (G-4) was

carried out in Bundelkhand Granitoid Complex locatedat Jhansi and Mahoba Districts of Uttar Pradesh to

assess tungsten & associated mineralisation.Dissemination of fine specks of chaclopyrite and pyriteoccurs discontinously in quartz reef in Habupura areaover an extent of 200 m with a width of 10 -50 cm. Nightsurveys with UV lamp indicated bluish whitefluorescence of scheelite in the quartz reef fromBhasneh area in Jhansi district, Uttar Pradesh. Theanalytical results indicated very low tungsten valuesranging from

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TU

NG

STENTable 1 : Reserves/Resources of Tungsten as on 1.4.2010

(By Grades/States)(In tonnes)

Remaining resourcesReserve Total

Grade/State Total Feasibility Pre-feasibility Measured Indicated Inferred Reconnaissance Total resources(A) STD211 STD222 STD331 STD332 STD333 STD334 B (A+B)

All India : TotalO r e - 2230000 173063 19611152 23435954 25356049 16581246 87387464 87387464Contained WO 3 - 3568 450 9914 20180.92 103415.15 4566.28 142094.35 142094.35

By StatesAndhra Pradesh

Ore - - - 3640000 4700800 5952500 509000 14802300 14802300Contained WO3 - - - 5096 6574.64 8273.65 318.28 20262.57 20262.57

HaryanaOre - 2230000 - - - - - 2230000 2230000Contained WO3 - 3568 - - - - - 3568 3568

KarnatakaOre - - - 15361152 11805499 172921 9338246 36677818 36677818Contained WO3 - - - 2915 1775 142 1403 6235 6235

MaharashtraOre - - - 610000 5637250 1830000 - 8077250 8077250Contained WO3 - - - 1903 10304 3828 - 16035 16035

RajasthanOre - - - - 963666 17000628 5964000 23928294 23928294Contained WO3 - - - 1421.44 90171.5 2115 93707.94 93707.94

Tamil NaduOre - - - - - - 250000 250000 250000Contained WO3 - - - - - - 50 50 50

UttarakhandOre - - - - 138000 - 520000 658000 658000Contained WO3 - - - - 25 - 680 705 705

West BengalOre - - 173063 - 190739 400000 - 763802 763802Contained WO3 - - 450 - 80.84 1000 - 1530.84 1530.84

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TUNGSTEN

USESTungsten is mainly used in the form of ferro-

tungsten in making of special and alloy steels.Ferro-tungsten typically contains between 25%and 75% tungsten. The other principal use oftungsten is in the manufacture of tungstencarbide, one of the hardest synthetic materialsused in various industries. It is used widely inthe manufacture of cutting tools & devices and inwear-resistant materials, particularly those thatneed to be opera ted a t h igh tempera tures .Tungsten wires form the filament in incandescentlight bulbs and cathodes for electronic tubes.The metal is used in superalloys with copper orsilver and in Chemical Industry. It is also used inarmour plate and armour-piercing ordnance.Tungsten compounds are used in dyes andpigments; manufacture of paints & printing ink;and also in Ceramic Industry for producingyellow tint. Other alloys bearing tungsten havewide range of applications, i.e., ornaments, heatsinks, radiation shielding, weights & counter-weights, wear-resistant parts & coatings etc.

SUBSTITUTESTitanium, tantalum and niobium carbides

can be used in certain wear-resistant applications.Molybdenum tool s tee ls and tungs ten toolsteels are interchangeable. In some cutt ingtool applications, bulk ceramic is an alternative.Tungsten remains essentially unsubstitutable inits use for production of filaments, electrodes,and contacts in lamp & lighting applications.However, an electrodeless, non-tungsten lamp isavailable as alternative for commercial andindustrial uses. In some applications, substitutionwould most often result in increased cost orreduction in product performance.

TECHNICAL POSSIBILITIESFurther development of new metal shaping

methods , i . e . , l a se r i s becoming a v iab leproposition. Development of new cutting toolmaterials could reduce the usage of tungsten.Use of tungs ten scrap could be increased .Tungsten compounds could be used in light-sensitive applications.

Table 2 : World Reserves of Tungsten(By Principal Countries)

(In '000 tonnes of Tungsten content)

Count ry Reserves

World: Total (rounded) 3 5 0 0Austria 1 0Bolivia 5 3Canada 2 9 0China 1 9 0 0Portugal 4Russia 2 5 0USA 1 4 0Other countries 8 5 3

Source: Mineral Commodity Summaries, 2014.

POLICYAs per the Foreign Trade Policy, 2009-14, the

impor t s and expor t s o f tungs ten ores andconcentrates can be made freely.

CONSUMPTIONThe entire domestic requirement of tungsten

ore/ concentrates is met by imports. Sandvik AsiaPvt. Ltd, Pune, Maharashtra,Widia (India) Ltd,Bengaluru, Karnataka, and Rapicut Carbides Ltd,Ankaleshwar, Gujarat, Mishra Dhatu Nigam Ltd,Hyderabad, Andhra Pradesh and Sunflag Iron &Steel Co. Ltd, Bhandara, Maharashtra were theimportant consumers of ferro-tungsten forproduction of alloy steel.

The world mine production of tungsten interms of metal content in 2012 increased slightlyto 74,842 tonnes from 74,741 tonnes in 2011.China was the leading producer (83%), followedby Russia (6%) and Bolivia (2%) (Table-3).

Annua l consumpt ion of tungs ten ore /concentrate and ferro-tungsten during the year2012-13 is estimated at 538 tonnes and 18 tonnesrespectively.

WORLD REVIEWThe world reserves of tungsten in terms of

metal content are about 3.5 mill ion tonnes,distributed broadly amongst China (54%), Canada(8%), Russia (7%) and USA (4%) (Table -2).

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Table 3: World Mine Production of Tungsten(By Principal Countries)

(In tonnes of metal content)Country 2010 2011 2012

World: Total 60795 74741 74842Austria 975 861 706Bolivia 1203 1418 1500Canada 364 2368 2505China(e) 51287 61802 62000Korea, Dem. Peoples Rep. of(e) 100 100 100Peru 716 546 365Portugal* 799 818 763Russia(e) 3000 4200 4200Rwanda 630 950 1105Spain 303 425 496Thailand* 481 229 107Uzbekistan(e) 300 300 300Other countries 637 724 695

Source: World Mineral Production, 2008-2012.* Wolframite & Scheelite.

Canada North American Tungsten Corp. Ltd (NATC)

(Vancouver) cont inued to inves t in capi ta limprovement to extend the Life of its Cantung Minein the Northwest territories and to strengthenoperating performance. Production of tungsten inscheelite concentrates was incrased by 12%.

ChinaIn 2012, China's production of concentrates

increased to 62,000 tonnes of contained tungsten.Despite its position as the world's leading minerof tungsten, China has imported significantquantities of tungsten concentrate in recent years.China's Government maintained a programme toconserve its tungsten resources to ensure thati ts tungsten supply would meet ant icipateddemand.

Rep. of KoreaState-run Korea Resources Corp. planned to

increase its stock pile of various metals, includingtungsten. The new target was to stock theequivalent of 60 days of domestic consumptionby 2016.

RawandaTinco Investments Ltd (London, United

Kingdom) was investing in its Nayakabingotungsten mine, Northwest of Kigali Tinco plannedto increase production of Wolfram concentratesfrom 35 to 40 metric tonnes per month to 70 metrictonnes per month.

Table 4 : Exports of Tungsten and AlloysIncl. Scrap

(By Countries)

2011-12 2012-13Country

Qty Value Qty Value(kg) (`000) (kg) (`000)

All Countries 638430 1423388 408664 1951349 Germany 280028 456000 100523 504413 USA 175897 373748 140991 351347 UK 25228 41283 33326 262410 Poland 5949 46508 10597 181912 Sweden 28106 66824 39290 100418 Iran 5844 21492 9294 83967 France 4141 43788 4537 58381 Brazil 12542 45647 3106 46907 Japan 985 24614 937 39710 Italy 33259 52523 13869 37707

Other countries 66451 250961 52194 284177

UKWolf Minerals Ltd was studying the

feasibility of redeveloping the Hemerdon tungsten-tin-mine near Plymouth. The open pit mine andbeneficiation plant are expected to produceapproximately 2,700 tonnes per year of tungsten inwolframite concentrate and 450 tonnes per year oftin in concentrates for a minimum of 10 years.

FOREIGN TRADEExports

Expor t s o f tungs ten a l loys and sc rapdecreased drastically to 409 tonnes in 2012-13 from638 tonnes in the previous year. Exports weremainly to USA (35%), Germany (25%), Sweden(10%), UK (8%) and Italy (3%). In 2012-13 exportsof tungsten ores & concentra tes decreasedconsiderably to 93 tonnes as against 321 tonnesin the preceding year (Tables- 4 and 5).

ImportsImports of tungsten ores and concentrates

drastically decreased to 107 tonnes in 2012-13from 327 tonnes in the previous year. Importsare mainly from UK, Czech Republic and SouthAfrica. Imports of tungsten and alloys includingscrap decreased to 100 tonnes in 2012-13 from 154tonnes in the previous year. Imports were mainlyfrom China (41%), Singapore (16%), Austria (11%)and USA (10%). (Tables - 6 to 8).

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Table 5 : Exports of Tungsten Ores & Conc.(By Countries)

2 0 1 1 - 1 2 2 0 1 2 - 1 3Country

Q t y Value Q t y Value( t ) (L 000) ( t ) (L 000)

Al l Countr ies 3 2 1 6 3 3 9 3 9 3 9 1 9 8Vietnam - - 7 3 4 1 3 1U K 3 1 3 5 4 2 1 6 4 4 1 1 0I ta ly - - 1 6 9 5 6Other countrires 8 9 1 7 7 ++ 1

Table 6 : Imports of Tungsten Ores & Conc.(By Countries)

2 0 1 1 - 1 2 2 0 1 2 - 1 3Country

Q t y Value Q t y Value( t ) (L 000) ( t ) (L 000)

Al l Countr ies 3 2 7 5 1 7 9 1 0 7 2 8 7 6 2U K - - 3 9 1 3 9 8 7USA - - 1 6 9 3 4 9South Africa - - 1 3 1 8 1 3Singapore - - 2 1 4 5 5Japan - - ++ 1 1 8 6Nigeria 2 5 8 5 8 1 0 3 5 9Israel 2 7 7 3 5 1 6 3 3 2 6Czech Republic - - 2 4 2 8 6Other countries 2 5 8 0 5 ++ 1

Table 7: Imports of Tungsten & Alloys Incl. Scrap(By Countries)

2 0 1 1 - 1 2 2 0 1 2 - 1 3

Country Q t y Value Q t y Value(kg) (L 000) (kg) (L 000)

Al l Countr ies 1 5 4 3 0 8 2 5 8 6 2 4 9 9 8 2 5 2 5 5 0 8 8 China 3 1 9 9 7 6 6 4 4 6 4 0 7 8 8 1 1 0 3 8 1 Singapore 4 1 2 7 4 4 9 8 1 7 1 6 3 4 8 3 8 1 0 7 USA 2 1 3 5 8 2 4 9 2 8 1 0 2 0 2 2 8 7 2 7 Korea Rep.of 1 0 8 4 1 6 9 3 5 6 1 7 2 0 4 7 9 Germany 1 2 8 4 5 3 8 6 6 7 7 4 1 3 1 4 4 6 6 Austria 7 6 8 9 9 1 9 1 1 0 8 6 9 1 3 4 7 7 Poland 1 3 6 3 2 5 5 7 1 4 4 9 4 6 1 7 Chinese Taipei/Taiwan 6 4 7 1 0 2 2 1 9 4 8 3 6 7 5 Belgium 7 7 4 2 2 1 0 2 5 3 6 2 6 France 6 0 2 4 1 5 9 0 2 7 1 6 3 1 3 1 Other countries 2 9 9 5 0 4 7 9 7 9 3 4 5 0 1 4 4 0 2

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Table 8 : Imports of Tungsten (By Items)

2 0 1 1 - 1 2 2 0 1 2 - 1 3I t e m

Q t y Value Q t y Value(kg) (L 000) (kg) (L 000)

All Items 637994 1634925 462557 1656481

Tungsten & alloys, unwrought 305291 670619 224201 630766

Tungsten & alloys, worked Nes 154308 258624 99825 255088

Tungsten powder 150983 411995 124376 375678

Tungsten filament 52147 102325 19962 86790

Tungsten, unwrought 21783 245036 20407 76514

Tungsten waste & scrap - - 3480 5123

Tungsten wire 258773 616945 194507 857288

FUTURE OUTLOOK Demand for tungsten tends to follow general

economic conditions and is expected to increasealong with the improvement in economy. Worldtungsten supply will continue to be dominatedby Chinese production and exports. Future supply

from China will be affected by the ChineseGovernment's success or failure in controlling therelease of Tungsten material to the market.

In India, the entire demand can only be metby imports, as there is no indigenous productionof tungsten concentrates.