Since it opened in July, the newly renovated Wah Chang titanium sponge plant on 34th Avenue has produced one million pounds of high-grade titanium sponge, city officials and contractors who helped with the project were told Wednesday.

ATI Wah Chang President Lynn Davis said the plant nn which was closed in 2001 due to poor market conditions nn employs 73 people in family-wage jobs. The industry standard is about $12 to $25 per hour plus benefits. Davis estimated four other jobs are created in the community for each of the new jobs at the plant.

The renovated sponge plant is run by Wah Chang in the same location as the former Oremet sponge plant. Other parts of the former Oremet are now part of Allvac, like Wah Chang a division of Allegheny Technologies.

“We tried to employ local contractors as much as possible,” Davis said. “About 90 percent of this job was done with local contractors. The other 10 percent was done by specialists needed for certain jobs.”

Davis said the renovation cost $33.5 million. The bulk of the cost was the refurbishing or addition of furnaces and other equipment. Six furnaces are currently operational. In the next year, six more will be brought on line. Before its closure, the plant had 11.

The number and efficiency of the furnaces determines the amount of titanium sponge that can be processed. Davis said the renovation was so successful that Allegheny Technologies nn Wah Chang’s parent company nn plans to invest another $33 million in more furnaces and associated equipment.

“Before it’s all done, we’ll probably spend about $80 million and produce 110 to 120 new jobs,” Davis said. “It all started with the seed that was planted here.”

Davis commended city officials for their efforts to expedite permitting and to work with the company on innovative methods of handling effluent from the plant.

“City officials such as Mayor Chuck McLaran and City Manager Wes Hare told us we had their support from the start,” Davis said. “Dick Ebbert was our contact person and was a great supporter.”

Davis also praised Public Works Director Diane Taniguchi-Dennis, Building Official Blaine Brassfield and Fire Chief Kevin Kreitman for their efforts to ensure safety and codes were met, but on a fast track. The entire process took about 15 months from conception to completion.

Wah Chang’s Bruce Webb said the plant will be able to produce about 16 million pounds of titanium sponge per year. It will operate around the clock, seven days per week.

Titanium sponge sells for about $14 per pound on the world market. Sponge produced in Albany will be used internally, not sold.

Titanium sponge nn so named because it looks like a sponge filled with holes when other minerals are removed from it nn is the basic form of titanium. Railroad tankers filled with liquid titanium tetrachloride are shipped to Albany from Ohio. The titanium chloride is transferred into stainless steel vessels nn 6 feet wide by 20 feet long nn into which bars of magnesium are also placed. A lid is welded onto the vessels and they are moved into huge furnaces to be heated to more than 850 degrees.

The magnesium reacts with chloride and creates magnesium chloride salt, which is removed. Once cooled, the titanium is sliced into chunks, crushed and then run through a screen. Pieces must be smaller than one-half inch. The material is then dried and rescreened for even finer pieces. Each size is destined for specific customer needs.

The process takes about a week per vessel and produces 16,000 pounds of pure titanium per batch.

During the time the sponge plant was closed, Wah Chang purchased titanium sponge on the world market. There is only one other processor of this type in the United States, according to Wah Chang spokesman Jim Denham.

Other companies have plants in Japan, Russia and China.

In June, Allegheny Technologies announced plans to build a new premium-grade titanium sponge plant in Rowley, Utah. It will have an annual capacity of 24 million pounds and cost $325 million.

“ATI’s 40 million pounds of annual titanium sponge capacity provides opportunities for significant revenue and earnings growth and a stable low-cost supply of this vital raw material,” said Patrick Hassey, Allegheny Technologies president and CEO.

There has been significant increases in demand for titanium within the aerospace, biomedical technology and government defense markets, the company said.

Alex Paul can be reached at alex.paul@lee.net or 812-6076.