Archive | Nickel

ENERGY TRANSITION: US battery strategy aims to eliminate nickel, cobalt – by Andrea Hotter (Metal Bulletin – June 17, 2021)

June 17, 2021 in Battery Technology Innovation/Electric Vehicles, Cobalt, Critical, Strategic and Rare Earth Minerals and Metals, International Media Resource Articles, Lithium, Nickel

https://www.metalbulletin.com/

Full Report: https://bit.ly/3cPTRCP

The United States has published a strategy for lithium-ion battery manufacturing which calls for the elimination of cobalt and nickel from the cathode by the end of the current decade.

It intends to achieve this through research and development into new technologies, with the goal of establishing a domestic battery supply chain that meets the demands of the growing electric vehicle (EV) and electrical grid storage markets, the government said in the strategy document.

The blueprint has been developed by the Federal Consortium for Advanced Batteries, which is led by the government’s departments of Energy, Defense, Commerce and State, and includes many other organizations across the US government. Continue Reading →

Russia’s Nornickel uses digital tokens to fight illegal mining and trafficking of minerals – by Vladimir Basov (Kitco News – June 16, 2021)

June 17, 2021 in Canadian Media Resource Articles, Europe Mining, Nickel, Norilsk Nickel

https://www.kitco.com/

(Kitco News) – Russian mining giant Nornickel, the world’s largest producer of palladium and high-grade nickel and a major producer of platinum and copper, said that use of smart contracts in the company’s trading operations, where digital tokens are backed by the metals produced by the company, could help to fight illegal mining and trafficking of minerals, among other measures.

Nornickel delivered its suggestions during a roundtable dedicated to the fight against crime in the field of mining and circulation of minerals and precious metals.

The event was initiated by the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development, the World Customs Organization and the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime. The Russian side was represented by Nornickel. Continue Reading →

The U.S. has grand ambitions to conquer the global EV market — it can’t win without Canada – – by Ryan Castilloux (Financial Post – June 16, 2021)

June 17, 2021 in Battery Technology Innovation/Electric Vehicles, Canada Mining, Canadian Media Resource Articles, Cobalt, Critical, Strategic and Rare Earth Minerals and Metals, Copper, Graphite Mining, Lithium, Nickel

https://financialpost.com/

Ryan Castilloux is managing director of Adamas Intelligence, which provides research on strategic materials and minerals.

A US$174-billion U.S. plan to spur domestic production and sales of U.S.-made electric vehicles while bolstering domestic supply chains, from raw materials to parts, dovetails with allies Canada and Australia’s ambitions to become leading suppliers of raw materials to parts.

The plan is part of the massive US$2-trillion spending plan unveiled by U.S. President Joe Biden in March, that aims at creating millions of “good jobs,” rebuilding the nation’s infrastructure, and positioning the U.S. to “out-compete China.”

From a raw materials perspective, there are four main facets of interest for the Canadian auto sector in the U.S.’s grand ambition to win the EV market. Continue Reading →

Vale, Local 6500 ‘remain apart on important issues’ – by Jim Moodie (Sudbury Star – June 16, 2021)

June 16, 2021 in Canadian Regional Media and Web Publications, Nickel, Ontario Mining, Sudbury Basin, Vale

https://www.thesudburystar.com/

Clawbacks to benefits and pensions are the main sticking points for Local 6500, union officials said Tuesday — a day after members resoundingly shot down a new offer from Vale.

“Times are good right now in Sudbury — in fact they’re very good,” said Myles Sullivan, assistant to USW District 6 director Marty Warren, during a press conference.

“Now is not a time to be forcing us out on strike, demanding concessions. So yeah, we’re disappointed and frustrated, but ready to roll up our sleeves and get back to the bargaining table. It takes two sides to do that and we’re ready.” Continue Reading →

BASF, Canada in early talks on EV battery production – source – by Steve Scherer and Christoph Steitz (Financial Post/Reuters – May 20, 2021)

June 16, 2021 in Battery Technology Innovation/Electric Vehicles, International Media Resource Articles, Metals and Manufacturing, Nickel

https://financialpost.com/

OTTAWA — Several companies, including Germany’s BASF SE, are in preliminary talks about tapping a federal clean tech fund to set up production for electric vehicle batteries in Canada, a government official with knowledge of the discussions said.

The talks are centered on understanding whether the goals of BASF and others fit with the aim of the C$8 billion ($6.6 billion) “Net Zero Accelerator” (NZA) fund, the source said. Canada has set a goal to reach net zero emissions by 2050.

BASF is a key supplier of cathode active materials (CAM) needed for the production of lithium-ion batteries in electric vehicles (EV), and is the world’s largest chemicals and plastics producer by sales. Continue Reading →

Sudbury Local 6500 rejects latest offer from Vale – by Staff (Sudbury Star – June 15, 2021)

June 15, 2021 in Canadian Regional Media and Web Publications, Nickel, Ontario Mining, Sudbury Basin, Vale

https://www.thesudburystar.com/

A new contract offer from Vale to its striking workers was rejected by a strong margin Monday. Eighty-four per cent of USW Local 6500 members participated in a vote Monday evening, with 87 per cent opposing the revised deal.

The union’s own bargaining team had called the offer “concessionary” and did not recommend it to members. In a release, Vale expressed disappointment that the union had taken this stance.

“The company was in active negotiations with Local 6500 when it was informed of this position,” the miner said. “Vale’s second offer addresses issues of concern that we heard from our employees, including wages, pensions and post-retiree benefits for new hires.” Continue Reading →

Voisey’s Bay underground expansion delivers first ore – by Staff (Canadian Mining Journal – June 14, 2021)

June 15, 2021 in Battery Technology Innovation/Electric Vehicles, Canadian Media Resource Articles, Newfoundland and Labrador Mining, Nickel, Vale

http://www.canadianminingjournal.com/

June 11 marked the milestone first production of ore from the underground expansion project at the Voisey’s Bay nickel-cobalt mine owned by Vale SA (NYSE: VALE). The mine is located on the north cost of Labrador, about 35 km south of Nain, Nfld.

Underground production is expected to extend the life of the mine until at least 2032. Two separate deposits – Reid Brook and Eastern Deeps – have been developed. At peak production, they will produce 40,000 tonnes of nickel in concentrate yearly, or a processing rate of 2.6 million t/y.

The expansion also increases economic participation by the local Innu and Nunatsiavut Inuit communities. Indigenous employment has more than doubled to about 500 people. Sixty-five per cent of all procurement contract were awarded to indigenous-owned businesses. Continue Reading →

Column: A nickel refinery tops U.S. battery metals wish list – by Andy Home (Fiancial Post/Reuters – June 14, 2021)

June 15, 2021 in Battery Technology Innovation/Electric Vehicles, International Media Resource Articles, Nickel

https://financialpost.com/

LONDON (Reuters) – The United States government should invest in nickel refining capacity in coordination with its allies, according to the Biden Administration’s 100-day review of critical supply chains.

“If there are opportunities for the U.S. to target one part of the battery supply chain, this would likely be the most critical to provide short- and medium-term supply chain stability,” the report said.

It’s an unexpected priority. Nickel isn’t on the U.S. list of critical minerals. Although the country depends on imports, 68% of supplies come from what the report calls “allied nations” such as Canada, Australia, Norway and Finland. Continue Reading →

Vale’s Otranto says it’s ‘disappointing’ bargaining committee recommends rejecting second offer – by Staff (Sudbury.com – June 14, 2021)

June 14, 2021 in Canadian Regional Media and Web Publications, Mining Labour Issues and History – Sudbury and Global, Nickel, Sudbury Basin, Vale

https://www.sudbury.com/

The head of Vale’s North Atlantic Operations said today he’s disappointed the Steelworkers Local 6500 bargaining committee is unanimously recommending striking members reject a second offer from the company.

The union’s bargaining committee announced today it is recommending to its 2,500 members that the new offer be rejected, as it includes “similar take-aways with minimal improvements” over the initial offer.

On June 1, Local 6500 overwhelmingly rejected an initial contract offer, with 70 per cent of members voting against the offer on a voter turnout of 87 per cent. Continue Reading →

Mining Companies Call Themselves Green in Push for Investor Cash – by Scott Patterson (Wall Street Journal – June 8, 2021)

June 10, 2021 in Battery Technology Innovation/Electric Vehicles, Cobalt, Critical, Strategic and Rare Earth Minerals and Metals, Copper, International Media Resource Articles, Lithium, Nickel, Nickel Laterites

https://www.wsj.com/

Mining companies are trying to tap into the flood of cash targeting green investments by touting their production of materials that go into wind turbines, power lines and batteries.

They are playing down the environmental impact of their operations and, for many of them, their big businesses mining coal.

The International Energy Agency said in a May report that while coal mining will decrease dramatically in the coming years, “the mining of minerals needed for clean energy transitions increases very rapidly” in a global economy focused on bringing down carbon emissions. Continue Reading →

Sparking up the Ring of Fire – by D’Arcy Jenish (Canadian Mining Journal – June 8, 2021)

June 8, 2021 in Aboriginal and Inuit Mining and Oil/Gas, Canadian Media Resource Articles, Nickel, Ontario Mining, Ontario’s Ring of Fire Mineral Discovery

http://www.canadianminingjournal.com/

Progress on infrastructure in remote region offset by opposition from several First Nations, environmental groups

Once there were many. Now there are just two. The discovery in 2008 of vast deposits of nickel, copper, chromite, platinum and palladium in the Ring of Fire, in Ontario’s remote Far North, fuelled dreams of fabulous wealth and unleashed a predictable stampede to stake claims.

More than 35 junior mining companies laid claim to a piece of this crescent-shaped, mineral-rich formation, which, by some estimates, spans 5,000 sq. km. Even once mighty Cliffs Natural Resources of Cleveland jumped in with grand plans to invest $3.3 billion to a build a mine, a processing facility and a transportation corridor of 300-plus km to the CN rail line at Nakina.

But Cliffs was later forced to file for bankruptcy protection. Exploration money dried up. The dreams of future wealth evaporated as the prospects of production receded ever further into the future. And one by one, all those juniors exited, leaving just two Toronto-based companies still standing – Noront Resources and KWG Resources. Continue Reading →

First real green spring comes to Nikel – by Thomas Nilsen (The Barents Observer – June 8, 2021)

June 8, 2021 in Europe Mining, International Media Resource Articles, Mining Environmental Accidents, Pollution, Tailing Dams and Abandoned Mines, Nickel, Norilsk Nickel

https://thebarentsobserver.com/en/

“We, ordinary people living in Nikel, are very happy. The air is fresh, leaves are green,” says Tatiana Bazanova who has lived most of her adult life in what used to be one of Europe’s most polluted towns.

The infamous nickel-smelter shut down its last furnace in late December, ending 75 years of severe industrial air pollution.

Now, locals in the town for the first time experience a real green spring with clear blue skies under the midnight sun. “I love Nikel,” states Tatiana Bazanov who has lived and worked for the local municipality most of her adult life.

“Seeing the town without pollution pleases me,” she tells in a phone interview with the Barents Observer. Today, Tatiana has been in the hills above the town, taking photos of birch trees with green leaves. Continue Reading →

Wyloo Metals would put proposed Sault ferrochrome plant under the microscope, if successful in bid for Noront Resources – by Ian Ross (Northern Ontario Business – June 7, 2021)

June 7, 2021 in Aboriginal and Inuit Mining and Oil/Gas, Australia/New Caledonia/Papua New Guinea Mining, Battery Technology Innovation/Electric Vehicles, Canadian Regional Media and Web Publications, Chromium/Platinum Group Metals, Nickel, Ontario Mining, Ontario’s Ring of Fire Mineral Discovery

https://www.northernontariobusiness.com/

Australian mining investor focused on mining, processing nickel for Ontario’s electrical vehicle manufacturers

The prospective Australian buyer for Noront Resources won’t make any immediate shifts in strategy in the Far North mineral exploration camp should it acquire the Toronto junior mining company. But it will reassess the location of a proposed ferrochrome processing plant slated for Sault Ste. Marie as part of its own independent study.

The head of Wyloo Metals, the Perth-based mining company, is making it clear that the apple of its eye is the high-grade Eagle’s Nest nickel deposit – the lead project in Noront’s mine development pipeline – not so much its chromite prospects.

“The focus is on nickel,” said Luca Giacovazzi in an interview with Northern Ontario Business. The chromite potential in the Far North mineral belt, Giacovassi said, is viewed by Wyloo as more of a “longer term opportunity.”

Privately held Wyloo, a subsidiary of Tattarang, one of Australia’s largest private investment firms, is making a stab at acquiring all of the outstanding common shares of Noront, well beyond the 23 per cent share stake it currently holds as Noront’s largest shareholder.

The company announced its intention in late May to make a $133-million all-cash bid for Toronto-based Noront, the lead mine developer in the remote James Bay region.

For the rest of this article: https://www.northernontariobusiness.com/regional-news/far-north-ring-of-fire/wyloo-metals-would-put-proposed-sault-ferrochrome-plant-under-the-microscope-if-successful-in-bid-for-noront-resources-3850652

Nickel: No longer a forgotten battery metal – by Gerard Peter (Mining Review Africa – June 7, 2021)

June 7, 2021 in Africa Mining, Battery Technology Innovation/Electric Vehicles, International Media Resource Articles, Nickel

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Nickel will be the key beneficiary of electric vehicle (EV) adoption against the backdrop of other battery metals such as lithium and cobalt, supported by its dominant long-range capabilities. Furthermore, a wealth of nickel deposits will position Africa to benefit from an uptrend in prices in the coming years writes GERARD PETER.

These are the key findings of a recent Fitch Solutions report that looks at the opportunities and risks for nickel in the battery revolution.

The basis of the report has been founded on a recent Mining Review Africa webinar titled, Nickel: The Forgotten Battery Metal where Fitch Solutions, Carly Cassidy was a participant. Continue Reading →

Cash-strapped Noront Resources rebuffs Wyloo Metals’ loan offer in Ring of Fire takeover bid – by Staff (Northern Ontario Business – June 4, 2021)

June 4, 2021 in Aboriginal and Inuit Mining and Oil/Gas, Battery Technology Innovation/Electric Vehicles, Canadian Regional Media and Web Publications, Nickel, Ontario Mining, Ontario’s Ring of Fire Mineral Discovery

https://www.northernontariobusiness.com/

Wyloo owner Andrew Forrest sends a “big hug” to Matawa First Nation chiefs

Noront Resources is rejecting the offer of a $5-million loan from Australia’s Wyloo Metals, which is seeking to take over the Ring of Fire mine developer.

In a June 4 news release, Noront admitted it “has an immediate need for funding” but intends to go the private placement financing route to raise $6.1 million to keep the company running and to work on its exploration properties in the remote James Bay region.

Perth-headquartered and privately owned Wyloo, a major mining investor and explorer in Australia with global ambitions, came aboard last October to become Noront’s largest shareholder at 23 per cent. BaoSteel of China is Noront’s next largest shareholder at 5.4 per cent. Continue Reading →