The predominantly state-owned mining company Terrafame in Finland begins to produce nickel and cobalt chemicals used in, inter alia, electric car batteries.
For this, the company receives about EUR 175 million in the new financing of the multinational commodity giant Trafigura, the capital investment company Galena and the financial company Sampo.
At the same time, the state's ownership in the mining company reduces to about 71 percent from the previous 84 percent. The state does not participate in the initiative this time.
If all option rights are used, the state's ownership will in the long run drop to 50.1 percent.
Terrafame's goal is to start in 2020 a factory that produces approximately 150,000 tonnes of nickel sulfate and 5,000 tonnes of cobalt sulfate per year. with that, Terrafame would be one of the world's leading nickel sulfate producers.
Terrafames Chairman of the Board Lauri Ratia says it has been determined whether the nickel can be further processed with a view to the electric cars' batteries.
"We expect that the demand for nickel and cobalt sulfate used in the manufacture of car batteries will increase significantly.
Here Terrafame can hold on and develop knowledge and production capacity, says Ratia.
Today Terrafame extracts nickel, cobalt, and zinc at the mine in Sotkamo.
The state is satisfied
Mika Lintilä (C) Minister of Labor and Trade is pleased that private capital now flows to the mine in Sotkamo.
- Now the taxpayers do not have to bear the investment costs. The capital injection is a strong signal that things have been in the right direction in Terrafame.
The mining operation in Sotkamo is now on a very credible basis, notes Lintilä.
