22 January 2025
Nickel is a commodity that is currently a hot topic for industries around the world. With its combination of strength and malleability, it can be combined relatively easily with other metals – such as steel, to become stainless steel – while its capacity to store large amounts of energy also makes it an essential raw material in the production of batteries. And yet, despite its ubiquity, utility, and its importance to global markets, the world’s largest producers of nickel remain something of a mystery.
In this article, we reveal the five largest nickel-producing countries in the world today, according to data from the United States Geological Survey in 2023.
Few people are aware that Indonesia is the largest nickel-producing country in the world. In 2023 alone, Indonesia produced 1.8 million metric tons of nickel, or around 50 percent of the world's nickel supply. Indonesia’s nickel reserves are mostly found in eastern areas of the archipelago, such as South and Southeast Sulawesi, Morowali, and North Maluku.
Initially, Indonesia only produced nickel ore for export. However, nickel mining companies in Indonesia are now beginning to develop more advanced nickel processing facilities. One of the companies leading the way in this field is Harita Nickel.
Harita Nickel is the first company in Indonesia to successfully implement High-Pressure Acid Leaching (HPAL) technology and produce Mixed Hydroxide Precipitate (MHP), nickel sulfate, and cobalt sulfate. Currently, Harita Nickel has no fewer than six HPAL production lines, with a total capacity of 120,000 tons of nickel per year; three of these production lines are operated by PT Halmahera Persada Lygend (HPL), while three more are run by PT Obi Nickel Cobalt (ONC).
At present, Harita Nickel also has three nickel processing lines which use the HPAL method and are capable of producing 55,000 tons of nickel content in the form of MHP annually (MHP is the raw material used to make the cathodes in electric vehicle batteries).
In addition, Harita Nickel also has 12 nickel processing lines that use the Rotary Kiln Electric Furnace (RKEF) method, with the capacity to produce 120,000 tons of nickel content per year in the form of ferronickel.
The world’s second-largest nickel-producing country is the Philippines – Indonesia’s neighbor produced 400,000 metric tons of nickel in 2023. Nickel in the Philippines is mostly found in Palawan Province, Surigao del Norte Province, Surigao del Sur Province, and the Dinagat Islands.
In 2022, the Philippines exported raw nickel worth an estimated USD 1.29 billion where the majority of this raw nickel was exported to South Korea, Japan, and China.
The Philippines currently plans to follow in Indonesia's footsteps, by boosting its nickel down streaming capabilities. In 2024, the Philippines announced plans to add three more nickel processing facilities, which would bring the total number up to five.
Who would have thought that a remote island nation in the Pacific Ocean, New Caledonia, is one of the largest nickel-producing countries in the world? And yet, in 2023, New Caledonia successfully produced 230,000 metric tons of nickel, representing an increase from the previous year of around 200,000 metric tons.
Nickel mining in New Caledonia began in the 19th century, when the region was still a French colony. Then, in 1971, New Caledonia became the second-largest nickel producer in the world at that time, partly due to demand associated with the Vietnam War.
In 2023, Russia produced 200,000 metric tons of nickel, although this figure was lower than the previous year (222,000 metric tons). Nevertheless, Russia can still claim to be one of the world’s largest nickel producers.
Russia has long been recognized as one of the most prolific global producers of processed nickel. In 2023, Russia supplied 154,300 tons of nickel that traded on the London Metal Exchange (LME), thereby becoming the second-largest supplier in the world at that time, second only to China.
Canada is currently the world's fifth-biggest nickel producer. In 2023, Canada produced 180,000 metric tons of nickel. Ontario is the largest nickel producing province in Canada, followed by Quebec, New Foundland, and Labrador.
Canada has three nickel refining facilities, which are located in Fort Saskatchewan, Alberta; Sudbury, Ontario; and Long Harbor, in Newfoundland and Labrador.
Currently, Canada is developing a nickel sulfate and cobalt production facility in Ontario, along with a lithium-ion battery recycling facility.
The United States is the main market for Canadian nickel. In 2022, as much as 40 percent of Canada's nickel exports were sent to Uncle Sam, while around 12 percent of the rest went to China.
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