Due to the power crisis which commenced at the beginning of the current year and still continues to affect its major industries, South Africa may lose its position as the largest ferrochrome supplier in the world.
Although South Africa holds most of the world's chrome ore reserves, due to the shortage of power domestic ferrochrome producers have been working at only 90 percent capacity since January. Moreover, a five to 10 percent reduction in the country's ferrochrome output is expected yearly till about 2012-2013, when power supplies will be fully restored as state-owned electricity provider Eskom's planned power generation capacity comes on stream.
Till then, South Africa will be unable to supply the usual volumes to the world's ferrochrome market, giving an opportunity to rival producer countries such as Kazakhstan, India and China to take advantage.