French multi-metals miner Eramet's Weda Bay Indonesian nickel pig iron (NPI) project, which houses an estimated 10,000-tonne deposit of laterite nickel ore, will come online in the second half of 2020.
The project is being developed with Chinese stainless steel producer Tsinghan, which is undertaking all construction costs and will hold a subsequent 43% stake in the venture, and will focus on NPI production.Global NPI - a low-grade ferronickel invented in China and marketed as a cheaper alternative to refined nickel for use in stainless steel production - output increased by 28.6% year on year in the first half of 2019, bolstered by Indonesia increasing its production by 41.8% over the same period.Although global stainless steel production, NPI's primary application, remained relatively stable over the same period -up by a marginal 0.2% - production in China increased by 3.3% to 13.3 million tonnes.China's stainless steel ramp-up...