New Caledonian, Chinese companies plan Vanuatu nickel partnership – by James Regan and Cecile Lefort (Reuters India – September 30, 2014)

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SYDNEY, Sept 30 (Reuters) – The South Pacific islands of New Caledonia and Vanuatu are studying a plan to jointly mine and process nickel ores into refined metal to help produce stainless steel in China.

The acting prime minister of Vanuatu, Ham Lini, has expressed interest in the proposal and has asked the partners to lodge a formal application to construct the smelter in his country.

The move comes as Chinese steel mills scour the Asia-Pacific region for alternative supplies of nickel after top supplier Indonesia imposed a ban on such exports in January.

Under the proposed partnership, New Caledonian company MKM Group and China’s Jin Pei Century Investment (Group) Co Ltd plan to mine low-purity nickel ore in the French Pacific territory and ship it to Santo in northern Vanuatu for smelting.

Media reports in New Caledonia said the project would be owned 51 percent by MKM and 49 percent by Jin Pei. The head of MKM, Wilfried Mai, told New Caledonian television he had advised the Chinese investors to build the plant in Vanuatu.

“ALL THE ADVANTAGES”

“It’s a country in Melanesia, there is no tax, labour is not expensive and it’s not far away from our country – all the advantages,” Mai said.

Vanuatu has no history of mining or refining.

In contrast, New Caledonia is awash with nickel ore, holding as much as a quarter of the world’s known reserves. Nickel dominates the economy, with than 6,000 people employed in processing of the ore.

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