The company produces 10-14 tonnes a day and plans to buy more mining leases to lift production, group CEO Yong Mian Thong said in an emailed interview.

Its unit, Rahman Hydraulic Tin Sdn Bhd, is actively exploring the acquisition of neighbouring mining land, he added.

“The plan would be to adopt new methods, utilising higher levels of mechanisation and technology as a way to lower operating costs,” he said.

The proposed expansion comes just as supply recovers and a slowdown in top consumer China takes a toll on the demand for base metals.

Tin, mainly used as solder in electronics, has fallen more than 30% from a peak of above US$50,000 (RM219,000) a tonne in March. That’s a shift from 2021, when its price almost doubled.

While the market’s tightness has eased off considerably, tin prices are unlikely to return to pre-Covid levels amid robust demand and as the ongoing Russia-Ukraine war curtails the flow of metals, Yong said.

“In all probability, the price of tin has found its balance,” he said.

The outlook could mean “solid earnings” for companies, including Malaysia Smelting, Kenanga Investment Bank’s analyst Teh Kian Yeong wrote in a recent note, adding that he expected 2022 to be a record year for the company due to elevated prices.

The company’s first-quarter profit surged almost threefold to RM64.3 million from a year earlier, according to an exchange filing. Revenue jumped 30% to RM359.5 million.

Kenanga maintained its “trading buy” recommendation on the stock with a target price of RM5.55.

The shares, which traded at RM3.64 at 10.26am, are rated “buy” by all three analysts tracked by Bloomberg.

Separately, MSC is targeting to go carbon neutral, or negative, as early as 2025 when its five-megawatt hydro-electric plant is ready, Yong said.

The company is upgrading its power plant as part of its environmental, social and governance strategy to produce “truly green tin”, he added.