The verdict has been handed down for the Koniambo Nickel Solutions (KNS) plant, located in the north of New Caledonia. In the absence of a buyer, the industrialist has announced that it wants to part ways with 1,200 employees for economic reasons as of August 31. Only around fifty people could be kept on their jobs in order to keep the plant on “cold standby.”
The so-called “Northern” plant has been at a standstill since March 2024, after the decision of the Swiss raw materials giant Glencore to stop the financial hemorrhage and put its 49% stake up for sale. The furnaces at the industrial site were kept hot for a period of six months, while a buyer was found to finance the activity. But no white smoke in sight.
“The process of finding a buyer is actively continuing,” the company said in a press release relayed on July 26 by the public service channel Outre-mer la 1ère. “Three groups continue to show interest in our company. However, we have neither a finalized offer nor visibility on the financing of our operations,” regrets KNS.
Nickel pact on hold
An acrobatic way out of the crisis for the nickel industry, the island’s main employer, is long overdue. The signing of a Nickel Pact, desired by the government with all the players in the sector, presented on March 21, has still not been completed. The KNS plant is not the only one affected by the setbacks of the nickel market. The Doniambo ferronickel plant, operated by Société Le Nickel (SLN), a subsidiary of the Eramet group, is also in danger. Hit by difficulties in supplying ore due to the social crisis, it posted a net loss of 72 million euros in the first half of 2024.
A third and final plant, that of Prony Resources, capable of producing battery-grade nickel, is also in difficulty. Also loss-making and at a standstill, it is waiting for a loan from the State of 140 million euros to allow it to pay off its debts. A financial windfall that will only be released… after the signing of the Nickel Pact.
Source: www.usinenouvelle.com
