Nornickel expands nickel production to meet European demand

Mining and metallurgical company Nornickel said Tuesday it will expand its nickel production capacity in Harjavalta, western Finland, to meet the growing demand in Europe, reported Xinhua.

According to a press release, Nornickel plans to expand its annual nickel output in the Harjavalta plant from the current 65,000 tonnes to 75,000 tonnes by 2023, and to more than 100,000 tonnes by 2026.

The company did not publish exact financial details of the Harjavalta expansion, but Joni Hautojärvi, the managing director of the Nornickel operation in Harjavalta, said that it is the largest investment in the company's history.

Talking to the Finnish language business newspaper Kauppalehti, Hautojärvi estimated that the annual demand for nickel in the battery sector in Europe would reach 300,000 tonnes in 2030.

He also said the production of batteries would be at the 500 gigawatt hours level in 2030 in Europe.

As a Russia-based company, Nornickel took over the plant in Harjavalta in 2007. The turnover of the Harjavalta plant in 2020 was 1.1 billion euros, according to Kauppalehti report.