Pep, pleasure to formally meet you. I assume you are not a poker...

Pep, pleasure to formally meet you.

I assume you are not a poker player, because you never play the cards, you play the man.

1. Kenmare is a competitor so we want them to go down. Foolish decisions by the executive team will led to its demise. Iluka the target competitor will surely pick them up.

2. Chinese construction industry is wobbly, yes, but only for now. The TiO2 price will breach those levels, easily in the next two years with heavy demand from Asia and the U.S.

3. World pricing of TiO2, Zircon, Rutile are on historical lows and questions are being asked whether this will turn this year. There are two options, 1) the product no longer becomes viable and is discontinued, or the commodity value increases dramatically - given historical trends, the value will increase to new highs as we enter the 2020's with new technologies and population growth and requirements for building material.
Titanium dioxide has a high refractive index, which means that it is able to scatter and bend light strongly. When enough titanium dioxide pigment is used in a medium almost all visible light will be reflected, giving the appearance of it being opaque, white and bright. Opacifiers are most effective when their refractive index differs from the medium in which it is suspended. In this regard, titanium dioxide has a significant advantage over other commercially available pigments. See Pep - this quality is utilised extensively in the manufacture of paints/coatings, plastics, paper and in a range of other applications. Plastics is the fastest growing sector, with its major application in the packaging industry (I suggest you buy PGH, free tip from Hectic Eddie). What's most important though is that Titanium dioxide pigment is non-toxic and biologically inert, making it safe for use in a range of consumer applications such as in foods, cosmetics and pharmaceuticals. There is no economic or environmentally safe alternative to titanium dioxide in pigment. Titanium dioxide replaced lead in consumer end use applications, such as paint, due to public health issues related to lead toxicity. furthermore, significant governmental and commercial R&D work is being undertaken to attempt to determine a commercially applicable means of cost-effectively transforming titanium dioxide directly into titanium metal, as opposed to the current batch production process. If this were to occur, titanium metal would be expected to substitute for high quality steel (stainless steel) in many applications, given its superior attributes. Data suggests that if the cost of titanium is reduced by 50%, the annual consumption of titanium could increase by ~220%. Finally, Titanium alloys are used in aircraft engines (up to 20 - 30% of the engine) and in airframes. Approximately 42% of a fighter jet
(engine and airframe) is typically made from titanium materials The Boeing A380 Airbus uses approximately 65,000 kilos in the aircraft body and approximately 10,000 kilos in the engines.

The future of Tio2 - is developing applications in nanomaterials. As an example, titanium dioxide nanoparticles are used in dye-sensitised solar cells ("DSSC"), a relatively new photovoltaic technology which mimics the way plants convert sunlight into energy, although in this case the sunlight is transformed into an electrical current. The potential applications are widespread and range from lightweight low-power markets to large-scale applications. Other areas of research for the application of titanium dioxide nanoparticles include as an arsenic removal agent in water treatment facilities, cancer treatments (ability to target and destroy cancer cells), and cement that absorbs pollution.






4. There are many new sand mines coming online in 2015 including projects like Grand Cote - Yes, that is the global market we live in, a great project by MDL. There is a strong link between MDL and WTR. The future will see to this.

5. Eddie is not even going to start discussing Iron Ore - for reasons many know why.

Godspeed.