Arrow, which is part of Arrow Resources, based at Steinhausen in Switzerland, has entered into a tolling agreement to supply Hellenic Minerals with the laterite raw materials needed to produce battery-ready sulfate containing 10,000 tonnes of nickel (around 45,000 tonnes of nickel sufate), the company said in a press release on Tuesday March 2.
“With commercial production of sulfate commencing as early as the third quarter of 2021, ArrowMetals is in advanced negotiations to supply various battery and precursor manufacturers in Asia and Europe,” it said.
The deal comes at a time when car makers are searching the world to secure supplies of nickel sulfate, prices of which have shot up in the main production area, China.
The price of nickel sulfate, min 21%, max 22.5%; cobalt 10ppm max, exw China, was assessed at 35,000-36,000 yuan ($5,402-5,556) per tonne on March 5. This price narrowed downward slightly from 35,000-38,000 yuan per tonne on February 26, which was the highest since Fastmarkets began pricing the market in July 2018.
Fastmarkets is currently proposing to launch a series of reference prices for nickel sulfate sold into the China, Japan and South Korean markets.
ArrowMetals is a nickel- and oil-focused trading house, and accounts for 15% of the global supply of ferronickel, according to its website.