Darfo Albania Ltd. becomes Albanian Chrome; safety of miners announced as a priority

TIRANA, Sept.15- Darfo Albania Ltd. announced that its Board of Directors has decided to change the company’s name to “Albanian Chrome” (ACR), to reflect its move towards new development in the mineral industry of the country. The company has also decided to invest significantly in the safety and working conditions in its mine. “Darfo Albania sh.p.k”, now baptized as ACR, is owned by the Austrian company “DCM DECOmetal GmbH” and the Russian “Terwingo”. At the end of May, the owners of Darfo obtained the concession for one of the richest chrome mines in Albana, Bulqiza, as well as for Burrel and Elbasan. The conditions of the mines they inherited, however, were deteriorating. Mining accidents claimed the lives of four workers which, according to the company’s statement, “shocked the company as well as taught us about the priority of investing in safety and labor conditions.” Improvements include the salaries of miners will go up by 30 percent and new mining equipment has begun to arrive. Also, the administration of the company has changed to fit the new social vision and the needs of the workers. Except from Bulqiza, the company has started rehabilitating the site in Elbasan, for which it has ordered equipment worth 2 million euro. The first furnace will start operating this year. In Burrel, the detailed feasibility project has been completed and a decision about the investment will be made soon. In total, ACR will invest 17 million euro in the following four years. The consortiumm composed of “DCM DECOmetal GmbH” and “Terwingo,” represents a powerful and important industrial group for the extraction and reprocessing of minerals. They have marketing offices in Russia, Austria, Ukraine, China, USA, Canada, United Emirates, South Africa, and other countries.