Economic insight into energents consumption in copper melting and refining plants of Serbia using the method of reduction to conditional fuel (coal equivalent)

Abstract

Copper melting and refining include consumption of significant quantities of almost all kinds of conventional energents. Consumption is high in nominal as well as in specific form. This paper presents the analysis of energent consumption on concrete example of unique and only one Copper Melting and Refining Plant in Bor, Serbia, for the 7-year-period, divided in two periods good (1996-1998.) and bad (1999-2002), compared with referent year (1999). To get more detailed analysis, all energents were reduced to conditional fuel (coal equivalent). In the process of electrical enemy reduction to energy equivalent, we used the value of 0.54 for recovery level of energetic system of Republic of Serbia. Taking into account that energents participation in total costs on copper line is 35% - 45%, depending on capacity utilization, their well defined position can be of significant importance for increasing profit.