ASX Nickel Stocks: 5 Biggest Companies in 2024
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.
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.