Like lithium and cobalt, nickel prices have been on a wild ride since forecasts of electric vehicle demand for battery materials first entered the stratosphere and duly came back to earth.
In March 2022 two “big shots” of the metals trading world – Paul Singer of hedge fund Elliot and Xiang Guangda of Chinese nickel giant Tsingshan – faced off over short positions that led to a spike above $100,000 per tonne in a matter of minutes.
Over $12 billion in cancelled trades, lawsuits and a rethink of nickel trading on the LME ensued but the effect on the ground was short lived and limited.
Nickel sulphate entering the EV battery supply did reach more than $30,000 a tonne (on a 100% Ni basis) at the time but since then have been on a steady decline, averaging around the $17,000 a tonne mark in the second quarter of this year.
But compared to the lithium price trajectory nickel investors…
