production in New Caledonia

Indonesian nickel company plans production in New Caledonia

Indonesian Pt Aneka

Tambang nickel mining com pany has announced plans to build a nickel production unit by the end of the year, daily newspaper Les Nouvelles Caledoni

ennes reported.

The company, which specialises in gold and nickel, expects its extraction and production unit to start in 2002 and dou ble its current production level by reach ing 24,000 tonnes per year.

PT Aneka Tambang initially planned

to set up the plant in 2000, but later deferred.

It would become a serious competitor to French-owned Societe Le Nickel (SEN), which is currently the world leader in nick el production.

Latest figures from the world markets and the London Metal Exchange (LME), price the tonne of nickel to as high as USs6,2Bo.This will be a really good year for nickel producers,” Glencore said in a recent report.

New Caledonia, which is the major

world producer of nickel, released pro duction for May totalling some 1,807 tonnes, a total of 6,864 tonnes since the beginning of the year.

The production is a set-back compared to figures released last year. In May, the nickel production was exported to Japan and Australia. Exports from January Ist to May 31st this year have totalled 1.3 mil lion tonnes of ore, compared to 1.7 mil lion tonnes for the same period last year, statistics in Noumea show. (PINA Nius Online) •

An indonesian company entering the New Caledonion nickel industry would become a serious competitor to French-owaed Sodete Le Nickel (SIN), which is currently the world leader in nickel productioa. Pictured above is SIN'S Kopeti 2 mine in the north of the country