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Asia Mining

In Bolivia, China Signs Deal For World’s Largest Lithium Reserves – by Joseph Bouchard (The Diplomat – February 10, 2023)

https://thediplomat.com/

Members of the Bolivian opposition have questioned whether the deal, which was signed last month between the state firm YLB and three Chinese companies, will benefit the country.

In late January, Bolivia’s Luis Arce government signed a $1 billion agreement with the Chinese firms CATL, BRUNP, and CMOC (CBC) and the Bolivian state company Yacimientos de Litio Bolivianos (YLB) to explore lithium deposits in the South American nation.

The CBC are Chinese firms with past involvement in lithium extraction, battery recycling, and metal mining, respectively.

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The Biggest Source of Cobalt Outside Africa is Now Indonesia – by Annie Lee and Mark Burton (Bloomberg News – February 7, 2023)

https://www.bnnbloomberg.ca/

(Bloomberg) — Indonesia has become the world’s second-largest cobalt producer, bolstering its bid to be a big player in the electric-vehicle supply chain.

Production of the battery material in the Southeast Asian country surged past others including Russia and Australia to grab the No. 2 spot last year, according to US government data.

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India’s poor coal ‘thieves’ forced to scavenge for survival (Eco-Business/Reuters – February 8, 2023)

https://www.eco-business.com/

A tip-off led police officer Indradeo Rajwar into the Nimiya Tola forests of Hazaribagh, in eastern India, hot on the trail of two men on a motorcycle carrying stolen coal. As Rajwar closed in, the men dumped 1,200 kg (2,646 lb) of the dirty fossil fuel and escaped.

Rajwar’s report on the incident in Jharkhand state documents a story of theft that is common across India’s main coal-mining areas. “These forests are used as cover by people transporting stolen coal,” Rajwar said, adding that the perpetrators are mostly men aged between 18 and 35.

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Russian Mining Company Partners With China to Develop Massive Titanium Deposit in Arctic – by Malte Humpert (High North News – February 6, 2023)

https://www.highnorthnews.com/en/

Chinese investment and interest in Russia’s Arctic natural resources continues unabated. In addition to receiving regular shipments of LNG and crude oil, one of China’s major engineering and construction companies is partnering with Russian Titanium Resources to develop a massive mineral deposit in the Russian Arctic.

Russian Titanium Resources (Rustitan) and China Communications and Construction Company signed an agreement for the development of the Pizhemskoye mining project in the Komi Republic.

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Like Musk, nickel-rich Indonesia has high electric vehicle ambitions – by Fransiska Nangoy, Gayatri Suroyo and Bernadette Christina (Reuters – February 6, 2023)

https://www.reuters.com/

JAKARTA, Feb 6 (Reuters) – Armed with the world’s largest reserves of nickel and a ban on the export of nickel ore, Indonesia is making itself indispensable for the electric vehicle industry, which uses the metal extensively.

In just three years, Indonesia has signed more than a dozen deals worth more than $15 billion for battery and electric vehicle production in the country with manufacturers including Hyundai Motor (005380.KS), LG Group (003550.KS) and Foxconn (2317.T).

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Nickel Gets Fresh Supply Risk as Philippines Mulls Export Tax – by Manolo Serapio Jr and Andreo Calonzo (Bloomberg News – January 30, 2023)

https://www.bloomberg.com/

The Philippines, the world’s second-biggest nickel supplier, may follow neighboring Indonesia by taxing exports of the metal, adding to supply uncertainties as the market adjusts to a wave of new demand from electric vehicles.

The Southeast Asian nation is considering fees on exports among measures to encourage investment in processing plants, Environment and Natural Resources Secretary Antonia Yulo Loyzaga said in an interview in her office on Monday.

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China’s mining ambitions in Afghanistan haunted by militants – by Mifrah Haq (Nikkei Asia – January 26, 2023)

https://asia.nikkei.com/

ISIS-K steps up threats and attacks as Beijing eyes oil and copper

Escalating threats from Islamist militants are casting doubt on the future of big-money Chinese mining projects in Afghanistan.

Earlier this month, Xinjiang Central Asia Petroleum and Gas (CAPEIC) signed a 25-year oil extraction deal with the Afghan Taliban authorities for the Amu River oil field in northwestern Afghanistan. The company is expected to invest $150 million in the first year of the contract and $540 million over three years.

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Protesters in Azerbaijan outraged over alleged mine pollution – by Dave Gordon(Toronto Sun – January 29, 2023)

https://torontosun.com/

SHUSHA, Azerbaijan — An unlikely group of youth, eco-activists and religious leaders find themselves at the centre of the latest in a long series of disputes between bitter enemies, Azerbaijanis and Armenians.

For nearly 50 days, Azerbaijani protesters have expressed outrage at seven mining companies – including a Canadian one – railing against alleged decades-long environmental damage.

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Indonesia pushing for OPEC-style nickel cartel – by James Guild (Asia Times – January 26, 2023)

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Indonesia wants much more for its ore as demand for nickel used in lithium-ion batteries set to explode in new electric vehicle era

Indonesian Minister of Investment Bahlil Lahadalia suggested that Indonesia is looking into forming an OPEC-style cartel for nickel and other inputs used in battery production.

Nickel is becoming a hot commodity as it is a key input in the manufacture of lithium-ion batteries needed for electric vehicles (EVs) — and Indonesia has the world’s largest nickel ore deposits.

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Violence at Chinese-owned nickel smelter in Indonesia raises alarm – by Amy Chew and Ismi Damayanti (Nikkei Asia – January 24, 2023)

https://asia.nikkei.com/

KUALA LUMPUR/JAKARTA — Recent clashes at a Chinese-owned nickel smelting facility in Indonesia are likely to spread to other parts of the country if the government and Chinese owners fail to address issues of safety, analysts say.

Protests, some violent, have occurred sporadically in recent years on the mineral-rich island of Sulawesi, which is experiencing an investment boom for mining nickel, a key ingredient in electric vehicle batteries. Indonesia is keen to leverage its world-leading reserves of the metal and develop a domestic EV industry.

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Chinese and Indonesian Workers Clash at Indonesian Nickel Plant – by Muhammad Zulfikar Rakhmat (The Diplomat – January 17, 2023)

https://thediplomat.com/

The violence, which resulted in the deaths of two workers, is likely to inflame anti-Chinese sentiment in the country.

Two workers were killed in clashes and rioting at an Indonesian nickel processing plant over the weekend, officials said yesterday. The demonstrations at the PT Gunbuster Nickel Industry (GNI) in Morowali, Central Sulawesi, ended in clashes between groups of Indonesian workers and foreign workers from China, leading to the deaths of two people, a Chinese and an Indonesian.

On Saturday, workers belonging to the National Workers’ Union (SPN) held a meeting with the company. During the meeting, the mass of SPN workers presented eight demands to the company, but no agreement was reached between the two parties at the meeting.

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TSX slams Canada over Chinese lithium divestment order – by Harry Dempsey (Financial Times – January 2023)

https://www.ft.com/

Intervention risks risked harming free flow of capital on which mining companies rely

The Toronto Stock Exchange has called on Canada’s government to do more to replace lost capital after Ottawa ordered three Chinese companies to divest their stakes in Canadian producers of critical minerals.

Dean McPherson, head of business development for mining at TSX’s operator TMX Group Inc., said the intervention by Justin Trudeau’s government risked harming the free flow of capital on which mining companies rely to explore and develop resources.

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Two workers die in clashes at Indonesia nickel smelter (Nikkei Asia – January 16, 2023)

https://asia.nikkei.com/

Violence erupts as workers demonstrate for better pay and safety

JAKARTA (Reuters) — Two workers were killed in clashes and rioting at an Indonesian nickel smelting facility at the weekend, officials said on Monday, after violence erupted during a protest by a labor group demanding better pay and safety.

An Indonesian and a Chinese worker were killed during the unrest at the PT Gunbuster Nickel Industry (GNI) smelter, owned by China’s Jiangsu Delong Nickel Industry, which involved protesters, workers and security personnel, said Didik Supranoto, a spokesperson for Central Sulawesi police.

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India’s Foray Into the EV Battery Market Lacks Some Key Ingredients – by Swansy Afonso (Bloomberg News – January 10, 2023)

https://www.bnnbloomberg.ca/

(Bloomberg) — As the world tries to wean itself off dependence on China for crucial battery materials, India is taking bold steps to position itself as an alternative in the electric vehicle supply chain.

The government has unveiled incentives of at least $3.4 billion to expedite its lagging adoption of EVs as Prime Minister Narendra Modi vows to reach net zero by 2070. The idea is that manufacturing the costliest component — batteries — locally will make the end product more affordable for the mass market and set the country up as a potential exporter, tapping into surging global demand.

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Nickel market faces new shock as ‘Big Shot’ boosts metal output – by Alfred Cang, Jack Farchy and Mark Burton (Bloomberg News – January 2023)

https://www.bnnbloomberg.ca/

The billionaire at the center of last year’s nickel short squeeze is planning a major shift in his production mix, in a move that could reshape global supply dynamics and inject fresh volatility into the battered nickel market.

Xiang Guangda’s Tsingshan Holding Group Co. is seeking to profit from an unusually large premium in the price of refined nickel metal – the type that is deliverable on exchanges in London and Shanghai – over the intermediate forms that Tsingshan supplies for battery manufacturing, according to people familiar with the matter.

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