Nickel: World Primary Production, By Country Or Locality And Product

This table presents detailed data on the global primary production of nickel, broken down by country or locality and by product type, including metal, ferronickel, chemicals, oxide sinter, and unspecified forms. This information is critical for understanding the supply dynamics of nickel, a metal essential to various industrial applications such as stainless steel manufacturing, battery production for electric vehicles, and other high-tech uses. Tracking production volumes by country and product type helps stakeholders assess market trends, identify leading producers, and anticipate potential supply constraints or shifts in the global nickel market.

Analysis of the data reveals that global primary nickel production has steadily increased from 2.44 million metric tons in 2019 to an estimated 3.39 million metric tons in 2023, marking a significant growth of nearly 39% over this period. Indonesia stands out as the top producer, with total output rising sharply from 405,713 metric tons in 2019 to approximately 1.41 million metric tons in 2023, driven largely by a surge in ferronickel and nickel pig iron production, which alone increased from 380,000 to 1.39 million metric tons. China also shows a notable increase, with total production growing from 830,240 metric tons in 2019 to 947,800 metric tons in 2023, fueled primarily by a substantial rise in nickel chemicals production—from 41,300 to 335,000 metric tons. Conversely, some countries like Australia and Japan experienced declines in metal production over the same period, with Australia’s metal output decreasing from 106,470 metric tons in 2019 to 92,300 metric tons in 2023, and Japan’s total nickel production dropping from 182,410 to 136,000 metric tons. These trends highlight shifting centers of nickel production and evolving industrial capacities worldwide.

TABLE 12
NICKEL: WORLD PRIMARY PRODUCTION, BY COUNTRY OR LOCALITY AND PRODUCT1, 2

(Metric tons, nickel content)

Country or locality³	2019		2020		2021		2022		2023
Australia, metal	106470		115800		98970		96500		92300
Austria, ferronickel	1000		900		700		700		700	e
Brazil, ferronickel	55761		68097		75988		64084		72398
Burma, ferronickele	14900		17600		11300		6030		4360
Canada, unspecified	124736		124043		109298		91000	e	115000	e
China:
Chemicals	41300		64000		84000		235000		335000
Ferronickel, nickel pig iron	600340		504000		432000		392000		368000
Metal	188600		176000		159000		174000	r	244800
Total	830240		744000		675000		801000	r	947800
Colombia, ferronickel	40564		36094		38300		41815		38708
Cuba, oxide sinter, including oxides⁴	12900		13100		13800		13700		13700
Cyprus, nickel sulfate hexahydrate	--		--		227		953		638
Dominican Republic, ferronickel	28450		22005		27849		29223		17200	e
Finland:
Chemicals, including powder, salts, solutions, and other	10608		10800	e	9600	e	9310	e	8870	e
Metal, electrolytic, including cathode and briquettes	51792		52600	e	39200	e	45400	e	43300	e
Total	62400		63400		48800		54800	r	52200
France:5
Chemicals	2031		1323		2125		2003		1411
Metal, cathode	4946		6032		6730		4839		5714
Total	6977		7355		8855		6842		7125
Greece, ferronickel	11604		5774		4000	e	3900		--
Guatemala, ferronickel	20323		22894		21000		18000		--
Indonesia:
Ferronickel	25713		25970		25818		24334		21473
Ferronickel, nickel pig irone	380000		600000		850000		1100000		1390000
Total	405713		625970		875818		1124334		1411473
Japan:
Chemicals	16132		14000	e	16000	e	16000	e	16000	e
Ferronickel	62500		45200		46000	e	37000	e	18000	e
Metal	58778		55368		52000		52000	e	52000	e
Oxide sinter	45000		54700	e	51900	e	52000	e	50000	e
Total	182410		169268		165900		157000		136000
Korea, Republic of, ferronickel	46000		45600		44000		43500		46500
Kosovo, ferronickel	6000		5000		4600		--		8
Madagascar, metal	33733		9874		29285		35737		36000	e
Morocco, chemicals, nickel hydroxide	131		142		147		157		140	e
New Caledonia:
Ferronickel	70654		65051		56372		66220		71912
Oxide sinter	17267		7404		231		--		--
Total	87921		72455		56603		66220		71912
North Macedonia, ferronickel	15319	r	17747		17714		8349		3812
Norway, metal	92100		91100		91200		81900		95000
Russia, metal	166000		172000		146000		164000		156000
South Africa:
Chemicals⁶	4431		3940		4748		4419		4430
Metal	39137		29007		38000		37500		37390
Total	43568		32947		42748		41919		41820
Ukraine, ferronickel⁷	14200		14719		14000	e	7800	e	--
United Kingdom, metal	34976		35177		30654		33384	r	34000	e
Grand total	2440000		2530000		2650000		2990000		3390000
Of which:
Chemicals	74600		94200		117000		267000	r	366000
Ferronickel	1390000		1500000		1670000		1840000		2050000
Metal	777000		743000		691000		726000	r	797000
Oxide sinter	75200		75200		65900		65700		63700
Unspecified	125000		124000		109000		91000		115000

^eEstimated. ^rRevised. -- Zero.

¹Table includes data available through November 13, 2024. All data are reported unless otherwise noted; totals may include estimated data. Grand totals and estimated data are rounded to no more than three significant digits; may not add to totals shown.

²Primary nickel refers to a nickel product ready for use by downstream consuming industries such as nickel chemicals and salts, ferronickel, nickel metal in various forms, nickel oxide sinter, and nickel pig iron. The U. S. Geological Survey does not use the terms Class I and Class II nickel as defined by the International Nickel Study Group (INSG). However, nickel metal reported here is generally equivalent to Class I nickel which is defined by the INSG as nickel with a minimum nickel content of 99% in the form of briquettes, cathodes (in other words, electrolytic nickel), flakes or powders, granules, pellets, and rondelles. Ferronickel, nickel oxide sinter, and nickel pig iron are classified by the INSG as Class II. Chemicals, although typically produced at refineries, are differentiated from production of metal when feasible. Several countries produced nickel-containing matte and other intermediates, but output of nickel in such materials has been excluded from this table to avoid double counting. Countries that produced intermediate products for export are listed in table 11.

³In addition to the countries and (or) localities listed, North Korea was thought to have produced metallic nickel and (or) ferronickel, but information was inadequate to make reliable estimates of output levels. Several countries and (or) localities produced nickel-containing matte, but output of nickel in such materials has been excluded from this table to avoid double counting. Countries and (or) localities that produced matte for export are listed in table 11.

⁴Includes cobalt content of nickel oxide and oxide sinter.

⁵Includes metal and nickel chloride.

⁶Primarily in the form of crystalline nickel sulfate.

⁷May include nickel in remelt alloys derived from scrap.