An ore crushing plant at Ban Phuc Nickel Mine (Photo VGP)It is forecast that the demand for metals used to produce electric batteries,including nickel, will increase due to the rise in electric vehicles.Worldwide nickel reserves are currently estimated at around 89 million tonnes.
Nickel is one of many sought-after global resources, as is widely used intechnologies such as batteries for vehicles.
Ngo Xuan Thanh from the Hanoi University of Mining and Geology told baochinhphu.vn that, about 70 percentof the world's nickel is for stainless steel production, 17 percent for"superalloys", and 7 percent for the plating industry. The rest isused in other fields such as rechargeable batteries, catalysts and otherchemical agents.
The proportion of nickel-metal used in producing batteries currently accountsfor about 4 percent of the world's nickel production.
As the amount of nickel used in batteries for electric vehicles is higher, thedemand for nickel will increase significantly.
Moreover, in the context of the growing stainless steel manufacturing industry,nickel consumption is expected to continue to increase (from 2.4 million tonnesin 2019 to 2.8 million tonnes by 2025), with a growth rate of about 2.2 percenta year.
According to Dao Cong Vu from the Institute of Mining and Metallurgy Scienceand Technology, Vietnam’s total nickel reserves and resources are estimated at3.6 million tonnes of metallic nickel concentrated mainly in the provinces ofThanh Hoa (3,067,020 tonnes), Son La (420,523 tonnes), and Cao Bang (133,677tonnes).
Most Nickel resources exist in the form of accompanying minerals in chromiumore in the Co Dinh Chromite Mine (Thanh Hoa) that there is no effectiverecovery solution. Nickel ores in the Son La and Cao Bang areas are mainlydiffused nickel-copper ores.
Vu added that today's most appropriate development of nickeldeep-processing technology is the production of nickel salt preparations andcooperation with enterprises with source technology to produce batteries fromdomestic nickel ore sources.
This could help meet the electric vehicle industry's needs for developingrenewable energy and effectively promoting Vietnam’s precious naturalresources.
In 2018, the Prime Minister approved the plan to exploit gold, copper,nickel and molybdenum ores by 2025.
It is expected that mining nickel concentrate output will be 118,000tonnes. The country would invest and put into operation two nickel factorieswith a total output of about 8,000 - 11,000 tonnes a year.
Blackstone Minerals, an Australian exploration and mining company, isdeveloping three closely related projects in the north of Vietnam. Blackstone'svision is to be a leader in the battery revolution.
In 2019, Blackstone acquired 90 percent of Ban Phuc Nickel Mine Co Ltd, whichoperates the Ta Khoa Nickel Mine in Ban Phuc commune, Bac Yen district, Son Laprovince.
Scott Williamson, Blackstone's Managing Director, said: "Vietnam has thepotential to become a major player in the nickel market, and this isunderpinned by the quality of the existing reserves as well as overallgeological potential."
He said that the growth rate in nickel demand for battery applications would bedriven by two primary factors: the level of uptake of electric vehicles bylocal communities and the potential for Vietnamese electric car manufacturersto service global markets.
"It is important to consider sustainable and environmentally friendlymethods of sourcing nickel, and with this regard, it would be prudent for Vietnamto establish production lines that can recycle nickel," he said.
"At Blackstone, we consider this part of our longer-term strategicplanning. It will take time for nickel inventories (available for recycling) tobuild up, and we want to establish our technologies to recycle technology atthis time."
Blackstone is focused on developing an integrated upstream (mining) anddownstream (refining) battery metals processing business in Vietnam thatproduces nickel: cobalt: manganese (NCM) precursor products for Asia's growinglithium-ion (Li-ion) battery industry and providing a product with"green" credentials from mine to customer.
Blackstone believes its efforts to create a business that value-adds to theproducts they mine – delivering this in an environmentally friendly way byusing renewable hydroelectricity – will put Vietnam at the leading edge of thegreen revolution.
According to Williamson, the project is currently implementing the pilotphase to bring the plant into operation by 2025. The project focuses onbuilding "green mines," reducing the amount of CO2 that goesinto the atmosphere to achieve the goal of zero CO2 emissions in the future.
Thanh from Hanoi University of Mining and Geology said the Blackstone Mineralsnew technology in producing materials for batteries was a new direction.
The mainly diffused ore source in Ban Nickel mine will focus on effectivelyexploiting the needs for developing the electric vehicle industry and renewableenergy. At the same time, he added that it was making an essentialcontribution to the country's economic growth and creating jobs for locals.
With surging demand for nickel underpinned by the electric vehicle revolution,promoting the country's natural nickel source will contribute to Vietnam’s socio-economicdevelopment./.
VNA
