BHP to supply nickel to Tesla

UK-Australia resources firm BHP has entered into a nickel supply agreement with leading US-based electric vehicle and battery storage system manufacturer Tesla.

Nickel will be supplied to Tesla from BHP's Nickel West unit in Western Australia, the Melbourne-based group said, without disclosing details on the size, duration or other terms of the agreement.

Nickel West, which produced 89,000t of nickel metal in the July 2020-June 2021 fiscal year, will start producing nickel sulphate from a 100,000 t/yr plant at its Kwinana refinery near Perth in the July-September quarter. It currently supplies most of its nickel to customers in powder or briquettes. Nickel sulphate is increasingly in demand from the lithium-ion battery supply chain that includes electric vehicle automakers, battery makers and cathode and precursor producers.

"Demand for nickel in batteries is estimated to grow by over 500pc over the next decade, in large part to support the world's rising demand for electric vehicles," BHP chief commercial officer Vandita Pant said.

In addition to the supply agreement, BHP and Tesla will collaborate on ways to make the battery supply chain more sustainable, with a focus on end-to-end raw material traceability using blockchain, technical exchange for battery raw materials production, and promotion of sustainability in the resources sector.

BHP will also collaborate with Tesla on energy storage solutions to identify opportunities to lower carbon emissions in their respective operations through increased use of renewable energy paired with battery storage.

By Angus Macmillan