The company behind a massive industrial mine in Indonesia that is swiftly becoming a major nickel producer says that it is implementing policies to address the environmental concerns associated with mining nickel.
Nickel is among a group of minerals used to develop the rechargeable batteries in everything from mobile phones and laptops to electric vehicles and stationary storage solutions. As major economies such as the United States, China and countries in the European Union transition from dirty fuels and gas-powered cars to electric vehicles and renewable energy, demand for metals such as nickel are expected to skyrocket.
Last year, Brazilian mining company Vale said that it expects to see a 44% increase in worldwide nickel demand by the end of the decade. However, with global nickel production expected to scale up to meet the growing demand, there have been growing concerns about the environmental impact of expanding nickel mining operations.
PT Indonesia Morowali Industrial Park (IMIP), the company in charge of the Morowali Industrial Park, a massive 3,000 hectares complex that is poised to flood the market with new nickel, says that it has started working to mitigate the complex’s ecological impact. IMIP managing director Hamid Mina said that the company will spend the next five years focusing on a “green industry.” She concedes that while most industries generate some degree of pollution, it is important that the pollution is controlled by government rule.
Indonesia is currently the largest nickel producer in the world, and it’s predicted that the country will be producing 60% of the global copper supply by 2025. However, Indonesian companies extract nickel via an especially carbon-intensive process that generates a significant amount of carbon dioxide equivalent.
Indonesian nickel production is estimated to produce around 58.6 tons of CO2 equivalent for every ton of nickel produced. Conversely, nickel mining operations in other countries have an average Co2 equivalent production rate of 48 tons for every ton of nickel.
If the Morowali Industrial Park launches operations using current production techniques, it could significantly increase the greenhouse gas emissions in Indonesia’s nickel industry. Mina explained that the complex would address environmental impact issues by constructing up to 500 megawatts worth of solar panels to lower its carbon footprint.
The company will start with a $63 million investment for the construction of the first 100 megawatts of solar panels with an annual capacity of 180 million kilowatt-hours of power. The park will also limit the use of petrol-powered trucks by constructing 50 kilometers (31 miles) of pipes to transport slurry straight from the nickel mines to the factory.
As more major mineral extractors such as Canada Nickel Company Inc. (TSX.V: CNC) (OTCQX: CNIKF) follow this example and put ecofriendliness at the core of their operations, the perception of nickel mining as an environmentally harmful process will fade with time.
NOTE TO INVESTORS: The latest news and updates relating to Canada Nickel Company Inc. (TSX.V: CNC) (OTCQX: CNIKF) are available in the company’s newsroom at http://ibn.fm/CNIKF
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