Eramet: SLN takes a major step forward in its plan

Paris, February 15, 2022 – 7:00 am

PRESS RELEASE

Eramet: SLN takes a major step forward in its plan

The Government of New Caledonia issued unanimously the export authorisations for Société Le Nickel up to 2 million tons of nickel ore, which brings its annual export authorisation up to 6 million tons.

The announcement was made today in New Caledonia during a joint press conference between the New Caledonian Government and SLN.

Eramet welcomes this decision which gives SLN the framework for action it needs in order to implement the mining part of its rescue plan.

Since the arrival of low-cost producers a decade ago, SLN has had to adapt by rebalancing its mining and metallurgical activities in order to remain competitive.

In April 2019, SLN had obtained a first export authorisation of 4 million tons of ore which could not be transformed in New Caledonia. After 2.5 million tons in 2020, SLN has exported nearly 3 million tons in 2021, a year marked by the disruption of SLN’s activities, notably link to the health crisis.
In 2022, the ramp-up should allow the company to exceed 4 million tons of exports. The ramp-up to 6 million tons will take place until 2024.

More than 300 people have been recruited, mainly in the Northern Province, in mining villages and their employment area, in order to support this program, and nearly 200 new recruitments are to be expected before 2024.

SLN’s priority will still be to supply its Doniambo plant with suitable ore in order to transform it into ferronickel.

In line with Eramet’s commitments, SLN supports the development of this strengthened societal and civic approach in favor of the environment and the populations living near the sites in both provinces.

The fulfilment of SLN’s project for the future also relies on the significant reduction in energy costs for the Doniambo plant. Reflection on access to competitive electricity and the power plant project to supply Doniambo will have to be accelerated in 2022.

Christel Bories, CEO and Chair of Eramet, commented:
« I would like to thank the Government of New Caledonia as well as all stakeholders who contributed to this decision. We are attached, alongside with the New Caledonian authorities, to seeing SLN trace a new path. »

Calendar

2.23.2022: Publication of 2021 Group annual results

4.28.2022: Publication of 2022 Group first-quarter turnover

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Eramet transforms the Earth’s mineral resources to provide sustainable and responsible solutions to the growth of the industry and to the challenges of the energy transition.

Its 13,000 employees are committed to this through their civic and contributory approach in all the countries where the mining and metallurgical group is present.

Manganese, nickel, mineral sands, lithium, and cobalt: Eramet recovers and develops metals that are essential to the construction of a more sustainable world.

As a privileged partner of its industrial clients, the Group contributes to making robust and resistant infrastructures and constructions, more efficient means of mobility, safer health tools and more efficient telecommunications devices.

Fully committed to the era of metals, Eramet’s ambition is to become a reference for the responsible transformation of the Earth’s mineral resources for living well together.

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