Japan's Sumitomo Metals And Mining Corp (SMM) said on Monday it had decided to halt a long-term feasibility study for a nickel processing plant in Pomara, Indonesia, due to differences with its partner PT Vale Indonesia.
The Japanese miner and smelter has been working on the study since 2012 and expects the project to help SMM achieve its long-term goal of increasing its annual nickel production to 150,000 tonnes from about 81,000 tonnes currently.
An SMM spokesman said PT Vale had decided to seek another partner and that SMM and PT Vale had some differences in construction plans and costs.
"We have taken the decision as PT Vale has started to consider advancing the project with another company and we are unable to continue negotiations with PT Vale," the SMM spokesman said.
He declined to say who PT Vale's new partners were.
"SMM concluded that it had no choice but to discontinue the study as it was difficult to maintain its internal and external project research teams and there was no prospect of future progress," the company said in a statement.
Feasibility studies are also taking a long time because the COVID-19 pandemic has delayed the licensing process and discussions with PT Vale, the spokesman said.
In February, SMM President Akira Nozaki said his company hoped to make an investment decision "as soon as possible" on the Pomalaa project, which aims to start production in the late 2020s with a capacity of about 40,000 tonnes of mixed nickel sulphides a year.
"We will maintain our long-term targets for nickel production and continue to work to ensure a stable supply of natural resources," the spokesman said.
