Nickel miners expect output recovery next year

MANILA, Philippines — The country’s nickel output may rebound next year on the back of higher demand for the metal, coupled by better weather conditions as well as improved policy environment with the anticipated legislation of the rationalized mining fiscal regime.

Dante Bravo, a member of the board of trustees of the Chamber of Mines of the Philippines and president of the Philippine Nickel Association Inc., said nickel production this year could fall short of expectations after some companies stopped production due to inclement weather.

The situation was worsened by the prevailing low prices of nickel in the world market due to slower demand from China and higher supplies driven by increased Indonesian output, said Bravo, who is also president of Global Ferronickel Holdings Inc.

Companies, he said, must be able to cope with the volatile world market price of nickel. Bravo added he is optimistic the nickel mining industry would be able to adjust as firms look forward to the enactment into law of a new competitive mining fiscal regime in the country.

Last year, the country’s nickel direct shipping ore production rose by 19 percent on an annual basis to 35.144 million dry metric tons (DMT) from 29.423 million DMT recorded in 2022, based on Mines and Geosciences Bureau (MGB) data.

Total production was valued at P65.845 billion, about seven percent higher than the P61.659 billion in 2022 driven by higher volume that offset the drop in global nickel prices.

However, nickel mine production performance this year has been lackluster amid the continued decline in global prices.

Nickel ore production in the first half dropped by 19.4 percent to 13.37 million DMT from 16.6 million DMT. Value wise, nickel output fell by 24.32 percent year-on-year to P23.99 billion from P31.701 billion last year.