Facility

BHP Nickel West — Kwinana Refinery (SUSPENDED)

BHP's Kwinana Nickel Refinery, located in Kwinana Industrial Area approximately 35km south of Perth, Western Australia, was the only large-scale battery-grade nickel sulfate refinery in the Western Allied sphere in the Asia-Pacific. Kwinana converted nickel matte from BHP's Kalgoorlie smelter into Class 1 nickel products including nickel sulfate for EV battery precursors. Capacity: approximately 100,000 tonnes of finished nickel per year. BHP announced an indefinite operational suspension of Nickel West (including Kwinana) on May 14, 2024, citing sustained low nickel prices driven by Indonesian HPAL competition making Australian sulfide operations structurally uneconomic. Approximately 3,000 jobs were affected. The Kwinana closure means no significant US-allied, Australian-origin battery-grade nickel sulfate refining capacity currently exists in the Pacific hemisphere. BHP retains optionality to restart subject to price recovery above ~$18,000/tonne. Source: BHP investor release May 14 2024; Australian Financial Review; The Australian.