Due to drought conditions caused by the El Niño phenomenon, water supplies to smelters in Indonesia's largest nickel industrial park have been restricted, potentially forcing the park to slash production by as much as 40%. This potential output reduction could help stem the slide in global nickel prices; nickel prices on the London Metal Exchange (LME) have fallen by approximately 17% since their peak in early May.
In terms of nickel consumption for ternary precursors and the production of ternary raw materials, demand for nickel has not declined alongside the contraction in domestic sales of new energy vehicles; instead, it has maintained strong year-on-year growth. Overall, end-market demand for ternary batteries appears resilient, defying the market's pessimistic forecasts from earlier in the year. Production of 300-series stainless steel—which has the strongest correlation with nickel—has already shown both year-on-year and month-on-month growth. Despite raw material constraints, actual stainless steel output continues to expand and profit margins remain high, signaling robust end-market demand. Inventories are expected to undergo seasonal destocking starting in July; demand likely remains strong, while the supply side faces raw material constraints due to reduced nickel pig iron (NPI) production in Indonesia.
GEM's HPAL project in Indonesia is transitioning from the construction phase to the capacity ramp-up stage. According to the company's annual report, nickel metal shipments are projected to reach approximately 110,000 tonnes in 2025—a year-on-year increase of 114%—with an existing annual nickel production capacity of 150,000 tonnes.
Weiming Environment has expanded into new lithium battery materials through its joint venture, Weiming Shengqing. The joint venture's Phase I production line, with an annual capacity of 25,000 tonnes of electrolytic nickel, has achieved continuous, stable production, while the Phase II line (also 25,000 tonnes) is currently in the commissioning stage. (Source: Cailian Press)
SunSirs has been continuously tracking price data for over 200 commodities for nearly 20 years, please contact support@sunsirs.com for subscription.
