The nickel industry is seen performing better in 2025 after experiencing lower production and soft prices this year, according to Dante Bravo, member of the board of trustees of the Chamber of Mines of the Philippines and president of the Philippine Nickel Association.
Bravo told reporters on the sidelines of the Mining Philippines Policy Forum in Mandaluyong City last week, the nickel industry is poised for a rebound with better weather expected with the end of the La Niña phenomenon.
Bravo, who is president and chief executive officer of Global Ferronickel Holdings Inc., said nickel production this year has been affected by work stoppage of some companies due to inclement weather.
He added global nickel prices this year have been greatly affected by the weak economy of China, the world’s biggest importer of nickel, as well as the oversupply of nickel pig iron from Indonesia.
However, Bravo said a sharp increase in nickel demand is expected next year because of the global requirement for transition metals especially for electronic vehicle (EV) batteries.
“We hope next year, after this La Niña phenomenon is over, we would have improved the situation. We see that the stimulus being done by China will continue… The prices of nickel will definitely rebound by next year. The effect of this stimulus from this Chinese policy will probably be felt in the succeeding projects,” Bravo said.
Bravo said for the long-term, prospects for the nickel industry are rosy, still driven by the expected boom in the use of EVs.
“When we look at the long term, its bullish because we see that the demand (for EVs) will increase.
I’m not saying exponentially but there is an expectation of a sharp increase in the demand in 2028 to 2030. We believe that (is) the inflection point (when) to the demand for EV will really start,” Bravo said.
“At the moment, more than 5 percent in total sales of motor vehicles are coming from EVs.
The cooling off is temporary given… the price of EVs are going down and the charging infrastructure is being installed,” Bravo added.
Data from the Mines and Geosciences Bureau showed metallic mineral production value decreased by 6.69 percent in the first half of 2024 to P114.77 billion from P123.01 billion in the same period in 2023 partly due to lower output and prices of nickel.
Nickel ore volume of production declined 19.42 percent to 13,372,483 dry metric tons (dmt) from 16,595,757 dmt while average price of nickel dropped 27.7 percent to $7.94 per lb from $10.98 per lb.
