WHAT IS IT?
Nickel is a silvery-white, hard, lustrous metal with excellent corrosion resistance and high-temperature properties. It is the fifth most common element on Earth but is economically extracted from relatively few deposits. Indonesia has become the dominant global supplier.
TYPES OF NICKEL PRODUCTS
Class 1 Nickel (>99.8% Ni): Briquettes, rounds, cathodes. LME deliverable. Used in batteries and specialty alloys.
Class 2 Nickel: Nickel Pig Iron (NPI), ferronickel. Lower purity. Used almost exclusively in stainless steel production.
Nickel Sulphate: Battery-grade chemical precursor for NMC/NCA cathodes in EV batteries.
Nickel Matte: Intermediate smelter product.
INDONESIA'S DOMINANCE
Indonesia banned nickel ore exports in 2020, forcing processing onshore. It now produces:
~50% of global NPI supply
Growing HPAL (High Pressure Acid Leach) capacity for battery-grade nickel
This dramatically shifted global supply chains and reduced Class 1 nickel supply relative to Class 2.
KEY USES
Stainless steel (primary use — 70% of nickel demand). Grade 304 stainless requires 8–10% Ni.
EV batteries (rapidly growing) — NMC (nickel manganese cobalt) cathodes
Superalloys for jet engines and gas turbines
Electroplating
Coins
TRADE CORRIDORS
Major producers: Indonesia, Philippines, Russia (Norilsk), Canada, Australia
Major buyers: China (stainless steel mills, battery manufacturers), Japan, EU
Tetra relevance: Indonesia is strategically critical — world's largest nickel ore holder.
PRICING BASIS
Benchmark: LME Nickel (USD/MT). Highly volatile — one of the most volatile LME metals. March 2022 short squeeze caused prices to briefly reach $100,000/MT (from $25,000) before LME suspended trading.
SPECIFICATIONS (LME Grade)
Nickel: min 99.80%
Standard shapes: briquettes or cathodes
Approved brands registered with LME