Nickel

  • Nornickel Projects Modest Growth in Nickel Production for 2024

    BY Sophia Schmitz
    Nornickel, a leading Russian miner, has outlined its production targets for base and precious metals in 2024, forecasting a slight increase in nickel output. The company expects nickel production to rise by 1.2%, reaching 204-211 thousand tonnes. Copper output is projected to remain stable at 363-373 thousand tonnes, with an additional 66-70 thousand tonnes of...
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  • India’s Energy Transition Hinges on Copper and Critical Minerals

    BY Lars Jensen
    Copper, dubbed the “metal of electrification,” is essential for solar panels, wind turbines, electric vehicles (EVs), and power grids. With EVs requiring nearly four times more copper than internal combustion vehicles, its availability is crucial to India’s carbon-constrained future. Demand for copper is expected to double to 50 million metric tons by 2035, driven by...
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  • Tanzania Signs $2.15B Deal with China for Railway to Burundi Nickel Mine

    BY Lars Jensen
    Tanzania has signed a $2.15 billion agreement with two Chinese firms to build a railway connecting its main port of Dar es Salaam to a nickel mine in Burundi. Tanzania Railways Corp. awarded the contracts to China Railway Engineering Group Ltd. and China Railway Engineering Design and Consulting Group Co. Transport Minister Makame Mbarawa stated...
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  • Vale Base Metals Launches Strategic Review of Thompson Assets

    BY Sophia Schmitz
    Vale Base Metals, a subsidiary of Vale has initiated a strategic review to assess the potential sale of its mining and exploration assets in Thompson, Manitoba. This move is part of the company’s broader effort to optimize its vertically integrated nickel portfolio, ensuring long-term competitiveness. The review’s findings are expected in the second half of...
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  • Nornickel Advances Copper-Nickel Mining Project at Severny Mine

    BY John Davis
    Nornickel, one of the world’s largest producers of non-ferrous and precious metals, is moving forward with a significant copper-nickel ore mining project at its Severny mine. The project will target deposits at depths of 430 to 730 meters within the Zhdanovskoye, Bystrinskoye, and Tundrovoye sites, which form part of the Pechenga Group, the raw materials...
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  • Vale Base Metals Launches Strategic Review of Thompson Nickel Assets

    BY Sophia Schmitz
    Vale Base Metals, a subsidiary of Vale SA (NYSE: VALE), has announced a strategic review to explore and evaluate options for its mining and exploration assets in Thompson, Manitoba. The review, which includes the potential sale of the assets, is part of Vale Base Metals’ broader effort to optimize its global mining portfolio and focus...
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  • U.S. Turns to Plants for Sustainable Nickel Extraction

    BY John Davis
    Scientists and companies in the U.S. are exploring novel ways to secure critical minerals, including a method called phytomining, which uses plants to extract metals like nickel from soil. This approach, backed by federal funding, aims to reduce reliance on traditional mining and mitigate China’s dominance in critical minerals. Phytomining relies on hyperaccumulators—plants that absorb...
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  • Indonesia Approves Higher Nickel Mining Quota for 2025 Despite Oversupply Concerns

    BY Sophia Schmitz
    Indonesia has approved a 2025 nickel mining quota of 298.5 million wet metric tons, up from 271.89 million tons in 2024, according to the country’s nickel miners’ association (APNI). This announcement contradicts earlier reports of a potential production cut, with APNI Secretary General Meidy Katrin Lengkey confirming the figure during a parliamentary hearing. Earlier in...
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  • Alaska Projects Target Domestic Nickel Supply for Clean Energy Shift

    BY John Davis
    The electric vehicle (EV) market and renewable energy adoption are driving unprecedented demand for battery metals like nickel, cobalt, and lithium. These materials are central to the cleantech transition, powering EVs, large-scale battery storage systems, and renewable energy technologies. As global EV sales are expected to surpass 20 million units in 2025, nickel demand alone...
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  • China’s Ferro-Nickel Imports Surge, Driven by Indonesian Supply

    BY John Davis
    China’s ferro-nickel imports rose to 8.98 million tonnes in 2024, reflecting a 6.24% year-on-year increase, according to data from China’s General Administration of Customs (GACC) released on January 20. The growth was primarily fueled by higher shipments from Indonesia, which supplied 8.67 million tonnes of ferro-nickel, up 9.48% from the previous year. The majority of...
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  • Nickel Sulfate Market Update: Limited Demand and Tight Supply as Chinese New Year Approaches

    BY John Davis
    As the Chinese New Year nears, trading activity in the nickel sulfate market has slowed, with most companies having already completed their procurement. Only a few downstream enterprises continue to make purchases. Amid margin inversions, producers have started to reduce production while holding prices and stockpiling. Additionally, Indonesia’s recently announced nickel ore quota has restricted...
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  • LME Sees Record Activity in 2024 as Nickel Market Rebounds

    BY Lara Browne
    The London Metal Exchange (LME) has fully recovered from its 2022 nickel crisis, achieving its highest trading volumes since 2015 and the fourth largest on record. Average daily volumes reached 664,698 lots in 2024, an 18.2% increase from 2023, with nickel trading jumping 58.8% year-on-year to levels last seen in 2021 before the market meltdown....
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  • Chinese Nickel Producer GEM Completes 30,000-Ton Battery Materials Project in Indonesia

    BY Lara Browne
    Chinese nickel producer GEM has completed its annual 30,000-ton high-nickel ternary precursor material project for power batteries in Central Sulawesi, Indonesia. The project, named PT Indonesia Qingmei Energy Materials (Qingmei), is part of the company’s broader strategy to support the growing demand for battery materials. GEM has also announced plans to expand the facility’s capacity...
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  • First Atlantic Nickel Acquires Strategic Claims in Newfoundland to Support Project Expansion

    BY John Davis
    First Atlantic Nickel has completed the acquisition of mining licence 038152M, securing 100% ownership of 12 mineral claims in central Newfoundland. These claims, known as the RPM South claims, are located directly south of the RPM Zone within the company’s 30-kilometer nickel trend at the Atlantic Nickel Project. The acquisition allows for expanded exploration and...
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  • Nickel Market Faces Pressure Amid Supply Surplus and Sluggish Demand

    BY Sophia Schmitz
    The nickel market is expected to remain oversupplied in 2025, with a projected surplus of 156,000 metric tons as production in Indonesia and China continues to expand. According to Jason Sappor, senior analyst at S&P Global Commodity Insights, the surplus is driven by increased output and slowing demand from the stainless steel and battery materials...
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  • Nickel Market Faces Oversupply and Price Pressure Heading into 2025

    BY Lars Jensen
    Nickel producers are bracing for a challenging year in 2025 as the global market remains oversupplied, pushing prices downward. Analysts point to Indonesia’s rapidly growing nickel industry as a key factor disrupting global supply and contributing to the price slump. However, the world’s largest nickel producer has announced plans to cut production by nearly 40%,...
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  • Renforth Resources to Leverage Gold Asset for Nickel Exploration in Quebec

    BY Lara Browne
    Renforth Resources (CSE: RFR; US-OTC: RFHRF) plans to monetize its Parbec gold deposit to finance nickel exploration across its Malartic Metals package in Quebec, according to CEO Nicole Brewster. Speaking at The Northern Miner’s International Metals Symposium in London on December 2, Brewster emphasized the company’s strategy to capitalize on its gold asset to support...
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  • Sumitomo Metal Mining to Expand Nickel Production with New Facility in Japan

    BY John Davis
    Sumitomo Metal Mining, along with its subsidiary Hyuga Smelting, announced plans to construct a new production facility at Hyuga Smelting to manufacture nickel matte using ferronickel and other raw materials. Construction is set to begin in 2025, with completion targeted for fiscal 2027. Once operational, the facility will enable Hyuga Smelting to produce both nickel...
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  • Two Bidders Emerge for Glencore’s Stake in New Caledonia’s Koniambo Nickel

    BY Lara Browne
    Two potential buyers have submitted offers for Glencore’s 49% stake in the struggling New Caledonian nickel producer Koniambo Nickel SAS (KNS), the company announced. The bids follow site visits conducted by the interested parties between late October and early December 2024. KNS President Alexandre Rousseau confirmed that shareholder evaluations of the proposals are underway but...
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  • Potential Indonesian Nickel Output Cuts Pose Upside Risk for Global Prices

    BY John Davis
    Significant cuts to Indonesia’s nickel mine production could remove over a third of global supply, creating substantial upside pressure on nickel prices, according to Macquarie Group Ltd. Reports suggest the Indonesian government is considering slashing nickel mine quotas from 272 million tons in 2024 to as low as 150 million tons this year. Such a...
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  • Nornickel Predicts Diverging Market Trends for Key Metals in 2025

    BY Lara Browne
    Nornickel, a leading Russian mining company and a top producer of palladium and nickel, has released its market projections for 2025, highlighting distinct supply and demand dynamics for copper, nickel, platinum, and palladium. Each metal’s outlook reflects a mix of global economic factors and industry-specific developments. CopperThe global copper market, currently in surplus by 200,000...
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  • Global Nickel Surplus Persists as Prices Face Continued Pressure

    BY John Davis
    The global nickel market marked its third consecutive year of surplus in 2024, with oversupply heavily concentrated in the high-grade nickel sector. According to Nornickel, exchange stocks of nickel more than doubled during the year, surpassing 100,000 metric tons. When including over-the-counter inventories, global Class 1 nickel stockpiles are projected to grow by as much...
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