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Reuters reported that Western Areas Ltd. (ASX:WSA) has come to a two-year agreement to supply China’s Jinchuan Group Ltd. with 26,000 tonnes of nickel concentrate.
Reuters reported that Western Areas Ltd. (ASX:WSA) has come to a two-year agreement to supply China’s Jinchuan Group Ltd. with 26,000 tonnes of nickel concentrate.
That’s a blow for BHP Billiton Ltd. (ASX:BHP,NYSE:BHP,LSE:BLT), whose Nickel West smelter could have used the material.
As quoted in the market news:
The agreement narrows the number of supply sources available to BHP as it strives to run the 42-year-old Nickel West smelter at its maximum capacity of just over 100,000 tonnes per year.
BHP has been redoubling efforts to secure supplies for the smelter after failing to find a buyer for Nickel West.
BHP buys 12,000 tonnes of nickel a year in concentrate from Western Areas under a contract running until 2017, and it was seen as a logical contender for the additional supply.