Nickel has traditionally been used in alloys such as stainless steel. However, in recent years, growing demand for lithium-ion batteries has brought attention to its role in the quickly developing battery sector.
In Australia, the country’s largest nickel-mining stocks are providing key support for both markets.
Nickel saw strong volatility in the first half of 2024 as Indonesian supply continued to flood the market, with some companies curtailing their production as the price fell below the US$16,000 per tonne mark in February.
A broad increase in commodities prices in April and May pushed nickel to a year-to-date high of US$21,615, but the base metal quickly fell again below the US$16,000 mark. Despite a boost past US$18,000 in early October, as of December 17, nickel prices were back down to US$15,775 per MT.
Given the challenges for nickel in 2024, share prices for many Australian producers have declined. With the long-term outlook for nickel being more robust, there may be opportunities for less risk-averse investors to find good entry points to the Australian nickel sector.
Below are the five largest nickel stocks on the ASX by market cap. Data for this list was gathered using TradingView’s stock screener, and all values were accurate as of December 17, 2024.
1. BHP (ASX:BHP)
Market cap: AU$204.67 billion
Share price: AU$40.52
BHP is a diversified mining company with headquarters in Melbourne, Australia. Worldwide, BHP runs dozens of mines that span North and South America and Australia. The company produces nickel sulphide ore out of its operations in Western Australia’s Northern Goldfields area. It covers the mining, development and production of nickel until both matte and metal are ready to be shipped to buyers. BHP sells over 85 percent of its nickel to the electric vehicle (EV) industry.
BHP is on its way toward net-zero nickel production. In September 2022, its Nickel West division signed a deal with renewable energy company Enel Green Power to begin construction of the Flat Rocks wind farm in Western Australia. The project is set to include 18 wind turbines, and they will be the tallest wind turbines in Western Australia. As of October 2023, more than half of the wind turbines were already in place. The first stage of the wind farm is expected to provide enough energy to power BHP’s Kalgoorlie nickel smelter and Kambalda concentrator once complete.
In the operational review for its 2024 fiscal year, which ended on June 30, BHP reported production of 81,600 tonnes of nickel during the period, a 2 percent increase compared to its 2023 fiscal year. This came in at the middle range of its 2024 guidance, which was set at 77,000 to 87,000 tonnes.
In October, BHP temporarily suspended nickel production from its Nickel West operations due to oversupply and low prices, but will continue to invest in the site to enable a restart and support. It will review the decision by February 2027.
2. IGO (ASX:IGO)
Market cap: AU$3.79 billion
Share price: AU$5.09
IGO is a diversified miner that produces several different metals, but its focus is on its 100 percent owned Nova nickel-copper-cobalt operation. Nova is located in Western Australia’s Fraser Range and primarily produces nickel.
The company’s results for its first fiscal quarter of 2025 show that nickel production from Nova came in at 3,692 tonnes, down 42 percent from the previous quarter on reduced ore grades and a flow through to recoveries.
IGO’s other nickel production operation is Forrestania, at which operations have now been put under care and maintenance as of the December quarter. Forrestania put out 802 tonnes in Q1, down 36 percent from the previous quarter due to the earlier than planned closure of the Spotted Quoll mine following a major seismic event in July.
IGO also has a 49 percent stake in the Tianqi Lithium Energy Australia joint venture with Tianqi Lithium (SZSE:002466,HKEX:9696). The joint venture has 51 percent ownership of Greenbushes, Australia’s largest lithium mine.
3. Nickel Industries (ASX:NIC)
Market cap: AU$3.78 billion
Share price: AU$0.84
New South Wales-based Nickel Industries, formerly Nickel Mines, is a significant producer of nickel pig iron, a critical component in manufacturing stainless steel. The company began producing high-grade nickel matte for EVs in 2022.
Nickel Industries has 80 percent interests in multiple nickel rotary kiln electric furnace (RKEF) operations in Indonesia: Hengjaya Nickel, Oracle Nickel and Ranger Nickel in the Morowali Industrial Park, and Angel Nickel in the Weda Bay Industrial Park. It also has an 80 percent interest in the Hengjaya nickel mine near the Morowali Industrial Park.
In the company’s 2023 annual report, it reported that its operations set a nickel production record of 131,126 tonnes. This included contained nickel in the 834,192 tonnes of nickel pig iron it produced with an average grade of 12.9 percent nickel, along with additional low-grade matte production of 119,822 tonnes grading 17.1 percent.
In its June quarterly report, the company reported that it had brought its interest in the Excelsior nickel-cobalt project up to 44 percent, an increase of 30.25 percent. The project is currently under construction and is expected to commissioned ahead of October 2025.
Nickel Industries September quarterly report highlighted that the period was the company’s strongest quarter of the year, during which it delivered “over US$100 million in EBITDA from operations, a key contributor to this strong result was the record ore production and sales of almost 3 million wmt for the quarter from our Hengjaya Mine which delivered US$37.3 million in EBITDA.”
4. Centaurus Metals (ASX:CTM)
Market cap: AU$183.78 million
Share price: AU$0.375
Centaurus Metals is a mining and development company based in Brazil. According to the company, its goal is to become a major supplier of nickel sulphide to help provide a cleaner and greener future. The firm has its sights set on the development of its wholly owned Jaguar nickel-copper-cobalt project, which is located in Brazil’s Carajás mineral province.
On July 2, Centaurus released a feasibility study for Jaguar forecasting an after-tax net present value of AU$997 million with an internal rate of return of 31 percent and payback period of 2.7 years from first production.
The following month, the company released an updated mineral resource estimate of 138.2 million tonnes at 0.87 percent nickel for 1.2 million tonnes of contained nickel. This includes measured and indicated resources of 112.6 million tonnes at 0.87 percent nickel for 978,900 tonnes of contained nickel.
An underground scoping study is now underway on the high-grade nickel resource immediately below the feasibility study pit.
5. Ardea Resources (ASX:ARL)
Market cap: AU$69.89 million
Share price: AU$0.335
Ardea Resources is developing its wholly owned Kalgoorlie nickel-cobalt project in Western Australia, which includes the Goongarrie Hub deposit. The company has said the project “hosts the largest nickel-cobalt resource in the developed world.” Ardea is currently working toward a planned definitive feasibility study (DFS).
A 2023 prefeasibility study for Goongarrie Hub shows an ore reserve of 194.1 million tonnes at 0.7 percent nickel and 0.05 percent cobalt, resulting in 1.36 million tonnes of contained nickel and 99,000 tonnes of contained cobalt. The study indicates an open-pit operation with a 40 year life and annual output of 30,000 tonnes of nickel and 2,000 tonnes of cobalt.
In July 2023, the company signed a memorandum of understanding to develop Goongarrie Hub with a Japanese consortium consisting of Sumitomo Metal Mining (TSE:5713), Mitsubishi (TSE:8058) and Mitsui (TSE:8031). On February 29, Ardea shared that it has agreed with the consortium on a DFS budget and the scopes of work for the study.
The company announced on August 14, 2024, that it had been notified that the consortium had obtained approval from the Australian Foreign Investment Review Board for its investment; it also obtained merger control clearance from the Korea Fair Trade Commission.
Ardea is currently working to produce definitive feasibility study for the Kalgoorlie project, and provided an update on its progress in its September 2024 quarterly report.
FAQs for nickel investing
What is nickel used for?
Nickel has a variety of applications. Its main use is as an alloy material for products such as stainless steel, and it is also used for plating metals to reduce corrosion. As its name suggests, nickel is used in coins as well, such as the 5 cent nickel in Australia, the US and Canada; Australian and US nickels are made up of 25 percent nickel and 75 percent copper, while Canada’s nickel has nickel plating that makes up 2 percent of its composition.
Nickel demand is increasing from EVs, where the metal is a component of certain lithium-ion battery compositions; it has gotten extra attention thanks to that purpose.
Is nickel a good investment?
Nickel’s role in EV batteries has seen it gain increased investor attention. In fact, its price spiked to an all-time high in 2022, and it remains at levels not seen in over a decade. For investors looking to invest in green metals, nickel could be a strong choice, but everyone should perform their own due diligence to decide whether it is the right portfolio fit.
How to invest in a nickel ETF?
Although there are no pure-play nickel ETFs, some ETF options to add the metal to your portfolio include the iShares S&P/TSX Global Base Metals Index ETF (TSX:XBM) and the VanEck Green Metals ETF (ARCA:GMET).
Exchange-traded funds (ETFs) can be a good option for investors who prefer a safer approach to investing in a sector. ETFs can be purchased the same as any other stock, which means you can invest in them using stock brokers and investing apps.
Article by Melissa Pistilli; FAQs by Lauren Kelly.
This is an updated version of an article first published by the Investing News Network in 2018.
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Securities Disclosure: I, Melissa Pistilli, hold no direct investment interest in any company mentioned in this article.
Securities Disclosure: I, Lauren Kelly, hold no direct investment interest in any company mentioned in this article.
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