Canada 'very unlikely' to join OPEC-like group for nickel - govt source
OTTAWA - Canada has not committed to establishing an OPEC-like organisation for nickel-producing countries with Indonesia and is "very unlikely" to participate in any such group, a Canadian government source familiar with the discussions said on Thursday.
Indonesia proposed talks with Canada to establish the organization in a meeting between Investment Minister Bahlil Lahadalia and Canadian Trade Minister Mary Ng on the sidelines of the G20 summit in Bali earlier this week.
A statement from Bahlil's office said Ng "welcomed the proposal and the next step for both countries to explore such collaboration opportunity."
"Minister Ng did not commit to exploring this collaboration at this time," said the source who was not authorized to speak on the record. "It is very unlikely we will be doing this (joining an OPEC-like nickel group). Officials expressed high levels of reservation about the Indonesian proposal."
A spokeswoman for the Indonesian investment ministry did not respond to a request for comment made outside of office hours.
Oil companies in many OPEC countries such as Saudi Arabia are owned by the government while in countries such as Nigeria contracts stipulate that government can compel private companies to cut or raise production.
A suggestion for a nickel OPEC had been met coolly by Canadian producers, who said a global cartel would not benefit them.
"Canadian companies are integrated into the North American supply chain and the Canadian resource base is a little bit different," said Canada Nickel CEO Mark Selby. "This proposal is more of a way for Indonesia to capture more value in their own country."
Bahlil said on Wednesday that a group of nickel-producing countries could make sure they get an optimal return from the electric vehicle (EV) industry.
The two ministers did discuss working with "allies such as Indonesia to develop sustainable and resilient global supply chains," said the source.
Indonesia and Canada are the world No. 1 and No. 6 nickel producers, respectively.
Comments
Press Office
Announcements
What's On
Subscribe to improve your user experience...
Option 1 (equivalent of R125 a month):
Receive a weekly copy of Creamer Media's Engineering News & Mining Weekly magazine
(print copy for those in South Africa and e-magazine for those outside of South Africa)
Receive daily email newsletters
Access to full search results
Access archive of magazine back copies
Access to Projects in Progress
Access to ONE Research Report of your choice in PDF format
Option 2 (equivalent of R375 a month):
All benefits from Option 1
PLUS
Access to Creamer Media's Research Channel Africa for ALL Research Reports, in PDF format, on various industrial and mining sectors
including Electricity; Water; Energy Transition; Hydrogen; Roads, Rail and Ports; Coal; Gold; Platinum; Battery Metals; etc.
Already a subscriber?
Forgotten your password?
Receive weekly copy of Creamer Media's Engineering News & Mining Weekly magazine (print copy for those in South Africa and e-magazine for those outside of South Africa)
➕
Recieve daily email newsletters
➕
Access to full search results
➕
Access archive of magazine back copies
➕
Access to Projects in Progress
➕
Access to ONE Research Report of your choice in PDF format
RESEARCH CHANNEL AFRICA
R4500 (equivalent of R375 a month)
SUBSCRIBEAll benefits from Option 1
➕
Access to Creamer Media's Research Channel Africa for ALL Research Reports on various industrial and mining sectors, in PDF format, including on:
Electricity
➕
Water
➕
Energy Transition
➕
Hydrogen
➕
Roads, Rail and Ports
➕
Coal
➕
Gold
➕
Platinum
➕
Battery Metals
➕
etc.
Receive all benefits from Option 1 or Option 2 delivered to numerous people at your company
➕
Multiple User names and Passwords for simultaneous log-ins
➕
Intranet integration access to all in your organisation