Nickel Sales and Demand Growth Projections

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According to reports from the Indonesian Business Journal, United Tractors (UNTR) has set a target for nickel ore sales to reach between 1.5 million and 1.6 million tons.

Recently, UNTR's company secretary, Sara K. Loebis, stated that this target was set following the company's forecast that nickel demand will continue to grow until 2027.

At the same time, Sara also provided updates on the continued acquisition of Anugerah Surya Pacific Resources' Stargate nickel mine located in Konawe Utara, South Sulawesi.

It should be noted that the Stargate nickel mine has a production capacity of approximately 2 million to 2.5 million tons of nickel ore. "Currently, we are preparing the land for the construction of the smelter and supporting infrastructure," she said.

She added that the completion target of the Stargate smelter is still under review and is expected to be completed in 2025 or 2026.

Regarding the future outlook for nickel, despite the oversupply in Indonesia and the Philippines, as well as the shadow cast by falling nickel prices, Sara remains optimistic. She believes that compared to the period during the pandemic, the price drop is not significant.

"Currently, nickel prices have fallen compared to last year, but they are still higher than before the pandemic. Therefore, the management of UNTR believes that with continuous efforts to improve production efficiency and sustainable mining efficiency, the nickel mining business can be well operated and managed."

Micro Comment

According to Kontan records, in the first quarter of 2024, UNTR recorded the sale of 382,543 tons of nickel products containing water (wmt) from the Stargate mine.

Details show that by January 2024, UNTR produced only 25,000 wet tons of saprolite, and by February 2024, UNTR's nickel production increased to 138,000 tons, with saprolite production at 60,000 tons and limonite production at 79,000 tons.

Continuing into March 2024, UNTR's nickel production will grow again to 220,000 tons, with saprolite and limonite production at 119,000 tons and 101,000 tons, respectively.

Content from the Indonesian Business Journal, does not represent the views of 51BXG.

51BXG does not guarantee the accuracy of the software translation, for reference only, the copyright belongs to the original author.

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