Chinese nickel sulfate producers face squeeze in annual contract talks

Chinese nickel sulfate producers face difficult annual contract negotiations for 2022, with upstream miners taking an aggressive stance while downstream battery precursor material producers are hinting at lower demand amid plans to implement integrated operations.

The Chinese nickel sulfate price has undergone considerable volatility in 2021, climbing in August to its highest since Fastmarkets began tracking the market in July 2018 amid a shortage of mixed hydroxide precipitate (MHP), the key raw material.
But the price has trended lower in the past two months because of the increased supply of MHP along with more nickel briquette being imported into China as an alternative to nickel sulfate.
Fastmarkets assessed the price of nickel sulfate min 21%, max 22.5%; cobalt 10ppm max, exw China at 35,500-36,000 yuan ($5,560-5,639) per tonne on Friday November 12, unchanged from a week earlier week but down by 2,000-2,500 yuan per tonne from the all-time high of 37,500-38,500 yuan per tonne reached on August 13.

"With more battery precursor producers either actively sourcing materials directly from miners or setting up joint ventures with...

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