A ton of nickel powder made by BHP Group sits in a warehouse at its Nickel West division, south of Perth, Australia Aug 2, 2019. REUTERS/Melanie Burton/File photograph
SYDNEY – Western Australia stated on Saturday it will supply royalty reduction to nickel producers in a bid to buoy the struggling business, a day after the steel was labeled as a “important mineral”, paving the way in which for producers to entry billions of {dollars} in low cost authorities loans.
Australia needs to construct a battery chemical substances business to reap extra worth from mineral wealth, however its nickel sector faces heavy job cuts after a leap in Indonesian provide noticed costs drop 40 p.c in a yr.
In an announcement on Saturday, Western Australia Premier Roger Cook dinner introduced a nickel monetary help program, which he stated would give a 50 p.c royalty rebate for 18 months, when costs had been under $20,000 per ton, repayable over 24 months.
“The Cook dinner authorities will supply royalty reduction to Western Australia’s essential nickel business, supporting hundreds of native jobs in addition to the state’s imaginative and prescient of changing into a world battery minerals processing hub,” the premier’s assertion stated.
READ: BHP to spice up nickel exploration spending amid EV growth
Federal Sources Minister Madeleine King on Friday positioned nickel on the important minerals checklist, that means nickel firms can have entry to financing beneath Australia’s $2.6 billion Essential Minerals Facility which presents low curiosity loans, and associated grant applications.
Weak nickel costs have compelled Australia’s excessive value producers to announce a number of writedowns and restructures, and analysts stated final month it can power a rethink by prime world miner BHP Group on its nickel technique this yr.
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