Wyloo Metals Pty Ltd., the private nickel producer owned by billionaire Andrew Forrest, is shutting down its Western Australian mines due to a sharp slump in prices for the key transition metal.

A sharp slide in nickel prices over the past year, driven by a jump in Indonesian supply, has hit Australian nickel producers, leading to mine closures, production cuts and writedowns in recent months.

Sumitomo Metal Mining Canada is investing about C$14.5 million to gain a 9.9% interest in FPX Nickel (TSXV: FPX).

BHP Group said on Thursday it was reassessing the value of its nickel operations after a price slump, in a move that could lead to writedowns amid an oversupply of the metal used in electric vehicle batteries.

South Korean battery manufacturer Samsung SDI has become the latest company to invest in Canada Nickel Company (TSXV: CNC), which is developing the Crawford nickel sulphide project in the Timmins-Cochrane mining camp of Ontario.

Widgie Nickel has updated the mineral resource estimate (MRE) for the Gillett nickel deposit, which is central to the Widgie South project sitting within the Mount Edwards project in Western Australia.

Vale Base Metals (VBM) is prioritizing a decision on whether to combine its nickel operations in Canada’s Sudbury basin with those of Glencore this year, a move that could reduce costs for both companies, its chairman said.

For the calendar year ending December 31, 2023 Ramu produced 33,604 tonnes of nickel and 3,072 tonnes of cobalt contained in mixed hydroxide precipitate (“MHP”), exceeding Ramu’s design capacity for a 7th consecutive year.