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weeks","Lithium",317.07,322.34,-1.64,35.66,90.62,[15,16,18,21,24,27,30,33,36,39,42,45],{"date":5,"value":9},{"date":17,"value":10},"2026-09-30",{"date":19,"value":20},"2026-09-16",354.99,{"date":22,"value":23},"2026-09-02",385.07,{"date":25,"value":26},"2026-08-19",372.67,{"date":28,"value":29},"2026-08-05",367.54,{"date":31,"value":32},"2026-07-22",388.26,{"date":34,"value":35},"2026-07-08",399.4,{"date":37,"value":38},"2026-06-24",410.62,{"date":40,"value":41},"2026-06-10",427.77,{"date":43,"value":44},"2026-05-27",449.85,{"date":46,"value":47},"2026-05-13",451.12,"/lithium/prices",null,false,true,{"publishedDate":5,"updateFrequency":6,"updateFrequencyText":7,"label":53,"today":54,"last":55,"percentageChange":56,"yearToDate":57,"yearOnYear":58,"oneYearIndexTrend":59,"url":48,"subscription":49,"isProtected":50,"hasAccess":51},"Lithium 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ion Batteries",74.53,71.3,4.53,-1.6,-20.88,[345,346,348,351,354,357,360,363,366,368,371,374],{"date":337,"value":339},{"date":347,"value":340},"2025-02-28",{"date":349,"value":350},"2025-01-31",71.45,{"date":352,"value":353},"2024-12-31",75.74,{"date":355,"value":356},"2024-11-29",76.98,{"date":358,"value":359},"2024-10-31",77.34,{"date":361,"value":362},"2024-09-30",77.43,{"date":364,"value":365},"2024-08-30",80.56,{"date":367,"value":207},"2024-07-31",{"date":369,"value":370},"2024-06-28",87.2,{"date":372,"value":373},"2024-05-31",90.7,{"date":375,"value":376},"2024-04-30",93.2,"/battery-gigafactory/prices",{"publishedDate":379,"updateFrequency":6,"updateFrequencyText":7,"label":380,"today":381,"last":382,"percentageChange":383,"yearToDate":384,"yearOnYear":385,"oneYearIndexTrend":386,"url":418,"subscription":49,"isProtected":50,"hasAccess":51},"2026-10-08","Black Mass",37.11,38.95,-4.72,-14,18.31,[387,388,390,393,396,399,402,405,408,411,414,416],{"date":379,"value":381},{"date":389,"value":382},"2026-09-24",{"date":391,"value":392},"2026-09-10",42.03,{"date":394,"value":395},"2026-08-27",43.88,{"date":397,"value":398},"2026-08-13",42.33,{"date":400,"value":401},"2026-07-30",43.42,{"date":403,"value":404},"2026-07-16",46.74,{"date":406,"value":407},"2026-07-02",46.01,{"date":409,"value":410},"2026-06-18",49.57,{"date":412,"value":413},"2026-02-12",47.34,{"date":415,"value":410},"2026-01-29",{"date":290,"value":417},43.15,"/recycling/black-mass-prices",{"publishedDate":262,"updateFrequency":187,"updateFrequencyText":188,"label":420,"today":421,"last":422,"percentageChange":423,"yearToDate":424,"yearOnYear":425,"oneYearIndexTrend":426,"url":459,"subscription":49,"isProtected":50,"hasAccess":51},"Rare Earths",172.08,171.72,0.21,20.59,30.21,[427,428,430,433,436,439,442,445,448,451,454,457],{"date":262,"value":421},{"date":429,"value":422},"2026-10-01",{"date":431,"value":432},"2026-09-03",170.83,{"date":434,"value":435},"2026-08-20",169.63,{"date":437,"value":438},"2026-08-06",172.28,{"date":440,"value":441},"2026-07-23",173.94,{"date":443,"value":444},"2026-07-09",171.69,{"date":446,"value":447},"2026-06-25",168.55,{"date":449,"value":450},"2026-06-11",165,{"date":452,"value":453},"2026-05-28",163.89,{"date":455,"value":456},"2026-05-14",172.63,{"date":209,"value":458},175.6,"/rare-earths/prices",{"publishedDate":198,"updateFrequency":187,"updateFrequencyText":188,"label":461,"today":462,"last":463,"percentageChange":464,"yearToDate":465,"yearOnYear":466,"oneYearIndexTrend":467,"url":377,"subscription":49,"isProtected":50,"hasAccess":51},"NCM Mid-Nickel",152.7,162.48,-6.02,17.38,53.11,[468,469,470,472,474,476,478,480,482,484,486,488],{"date":198,"value":462},{"date":200,"value":463},{"date":203,"value":471},171.08,{"date":206,"value":473},173.65,{"date":209,"value":475},164.53,{"date":212,"value":477},157.28,{"date":215,"value":479},151.44,{"date":218,"value":481},144.5,{"date":221,"value":483},130.09,{"date":224,"value":485},124.6,{"date":227,"value":487},122.35,{"date":255,"value":489},103.5,{"publishedDate":198,"updateFrequency":187,"updateFrequencyText":188,"label":491,"today":492,"last":493,"percentageChange":494,"yearToDate":495,"yearOnYear":496,"oneYearIndexTrend":497,"url":377,"subscription":49,"isProtected":50,"hasAccess":51},"NCM High-Nickel",144.45,149.67,-3.49,26.69,49.06,[498,499,500,502,504,506,508,510,512,514,516,518],{"date":198,"value":492},{"date":200,"value":493},{"date":203,"value":501},157.37,{"date":206,"value":503},160,{"date":209,"value":505},149.53,{"date":212,"value":507},141.97,{"date":215,"value":509},136.99,{"date":218,"value":511},129.81,{"date":221,"value":513},114.02,{"date":224,"value":515},109.17,{"date":227,"value":517},109.02,{"date":255,"value":519},99.44,{"publishedDate":198,"updateFrequency":187,"updateFrequencyText":188,"label":521,"today":522,"last":523,"percentageChange":524,"yearToDate":525,"yearOnYear":526,"oneYearIndexTrend":527,"url":377,"subscription":49,"isProtected":50,"hasAccess":51},"LFP",229.17,218.34,4.96,49.35,83.44,[528,529,530,532,534,536,538,540,542,544,546,548],{"date":198,"value":522},{"date":200,"value":523},{"date":203,"value":531},239.1,{"date":206,"value":533},258.32,{"date":209,"value":535},239.37,{"date":212,"value":537},213.01,{"date":215,"value":539},204.49,{"date":218,"value":541},218.06,{"date":221,"value":543},153.45,{"date":224,"value":545},134.02,{"date":227,"value":547},118.22,{"date":255,"value":549},111.93,{"id":551,"uuid":552,"name":553,"slug":554,"full_slug":555,"content":556,"relatedArticles":667,"relatedVideos":668},112473101999817,"6b6b32ed-091a-48ea-ac25-e342034dc828","Nickel hits seven year high – 2021 in review","nickel-hits-seven-year-high-2021-in-review","article/nickel-hits-seven-year-high-2021-in-review",{"_uid":557,"date":558,"tags":559,"editor":563,"content":573,"excerpt":646,"featured":50,"reporter":647,"_editable":651,"component":652,"seo_title":553,"categories":653,"visibility":659,"author_company":49,"featured_image":660,"seo_description":646,"author_full_name":49,"author_job_title":49,"formattedDate":665,"formattedArticleDate":666},"5102955a-fcd5-4cb0-a1a1-21cba7288b97","2021-12-30 00:00",[560],{"slug":561,"name":562},"nickel-prices","Nickel prices",[564],{"slug":565,"name":566,"content":567},"didi-bostock","Didi Bostock",{"job_title":568,"image":569,"bio":571,"linkedin":572},"Editor - Energy Transition & Economics",{"filename":570},"https://a.storyblok.com/f/287943243085208/512x512/2c5ca5c1a3/didi-bostock.jpeg","Didi is the Energy Transition & Economics Editor at Benchmark, covering a broad range of markets across the energy transition. His remit spans from downstream sectors such as BESS and EVs, through to midstream such as new technologies and battery production, to upstream critical minerals mining. He also leads on financial analysis across these supply chains, alongside in-depth policy analysis.\n","https://www.linkedin.com/in/didi-bostock-656342198/",{"type":574,"content":575},"doc",[576,583,588,593,598,613,626,631,636,641],{"type":577,"attrs":578,"content":579},"paragraph",{"textAlign":49},[580],{"text":581,"type":582},"Nickel climbed to seven-year highs in 2021, as a series of supply curtailments, in tandem with a stronger-than-expected recovery in stainless-steel production and robust growth in the battery sector led the market to swing into a deficit, writes Benchmark analyst Greg Miller.","text",{"type":577,"attrs":584,"content":585},{"textAlign":49},[586],{"text":587,"type":582},"Whilst much of the  discourse in 2021 centred around the growing utilisation of lithium iron phosphate (LFP) batteries  in China and the potential impact on the future uptake of NCM technologies in EVs, battery sector nickel demand continued to perform robustly throughout the year, recording a 42% y-o-y increase according to the Benchmark Nickel Forecast.",{"type":577,"attrs":589,"content":590},{"textAlign":49},[591],{"text":592,"type":582},"The scene was set early in the year, as prices across all grades assessed by Benchmark recorded significant gains in Q1, on the back of a rapid uptick in battery sector demand in late 2020 and unexpected supply side disruptions – most notably the suspension of Prony Resources in New Caledonia.",{"type":577,"attrs":594,"content":595},{"textAlign":49},[596],{"text":597,"type":582},"EXW China nickel sulphate prices reached their highest level ever recorded by the Benchmark Price Assessment during the first quarter of the year, with sulphate’s premium over exchange nickel prices peaking at $4,500/tonne during this period. Likewise, CIF Asia nickel sulphate premiums saw substantial upward pressure, as Chinese consumers looked abroad to secure units amid tight supply in the domestic market.",{"type":577,"attrs":599,"content":600},{"textAlign":49},[601,603,611],{"text":602,"type":582},"The nickel market was then rocked by ",{"text":604,"type":582,"marks":605},"the announcement in March that China’s Tsingshan was intending to convert some of its Indonesian NPI output to nickel matte to supply to CNGR and Huayou Cobalt",[606],{"type":607,"attrs":608},"link",{"href":609,"uuid":49,"anchor":49,"target":49,"linktype":610},"https://source.benchmarkminerals.com/article/what-does-tsingshans-nickel-matte-deal-mean-for-lithium-ion-and-the-nickel-industry","url",{"text":612,"type":582},". The announcement sent shockwaves around the market, leading exchange prices to fall by 11% m-o-m in March.",{"type":577,"attrs":614,"content":615},{"textAlign":49},[616,618,624],{"text":617,"type":582},"The price decline proved temporary, however. And with little improvement in supply side dynamics by the summer – Mixed Hydroxide Precipitate (MHP)",{"text":619,"type":582,"marks":620}," payables climbed steadily throughout the first half of the year, reaching highs of 95% in August",[621],{"type":607,"attrs":622},{"href":623,"uuid":49,"anchor":49,"target":49,"linktype":610},"https://source.benchmarkminerals.com/article/benchmark-launches-nickel-industrys-first-mixed-hydroxide-precipitate-mhp-price",{"text":625,"type":582}," – prices once again rallied on strong market fundamentals.",{"type":577,"attrs":627,"content":628},{"textAlign":49},[629],{"text":630,"type":582},"Amidst a shortage of battery suitable intermediates, class 1 metal dissolution acted as a balancer for the supply shortfall, fuelling a rapid drawdown in exchange inventories throughout the second half of the year. LME stocks were 139,000 tonnes lower y-t-d by early December – one of several converging factors that helped nickel prices break the $21,000/tonne mark in October for the first time since 2014.",{"type":577,"attrs":632,"content":633},{"textAlign":49},[634],{"text":635,"type":582},"These shifting procurement patterns led EXW China nickel sulphate prices to dwindle from highs in the second half of the year, due to the more favourable economics of metal dissolution. This downtrend was accelerated by restrictions on power consumption in China in late Q3, as well as cooling battery sector demand growth through the remainder of the year.",{"type":577,"attrs":637,"content":638},{"textAlign":49},[639],{"text":640,"type":582},"Following a year characterised by the failure of the supply side to match surging end-use consumption, the availability of battery suitable nickel is projected to see tangible improvements in 2022, driven by the launch and ramp up of new and existing HPAL projects in Indonesia, the introduction of new NPI- matte conversion capacity, and recently commissioned nickel sulphate plants in Australia and Finland.",{"type":577,"attrs":642,"content":643},{"textAlign":49},[644],{"text":645,"type":582},"Nevertheless, as 2021 proved, there is little margin for error.","Nickel climbed to seven-year highs in 2021, as a series of supply curtailments, in tandem with a stronger-than-expected recovery in stainless-steel production and robust growth in the battery sector led the market to swing into a deficit, writes Benchmark analyst Greg Miller. Whilst much of the discourse in 2021 centred around the growing utilisation of […]",[648],{"slug":565,"name":566,"content":649},{"job_title":568,"image":650,"bio":571,"linkedin":572},{"filename":570},"\u003C!--#storyblok#{\"name\": \"article\", \"space\": \"\", \"uid\": \"5102955a-fcd5-4cb0-a1a1-21cba7288b97\", \"id\": \"\"}-->","article",[654,657],{"slug":655,"name":656},"critical-minerals","Critical Minerals",{"slug":658,"name":150},"nickel","private",{"id":49,"alt":661,"name":661,"focus":661,"title":661,"source":661,"filename":662,"copyright":661,"fieldtype":663,"meta_data":664,"is_external_url":51},"","https://a.storyblok.com/f/287943243085208/0088effcc6/bm-nickel-smelter1.jpg","asset",{"alt":661,"title":661,"source":661,"copyright":661},"Dec 30, 2021","30th December 2021",[],[],1792773930947]