Ann: Drilling Confirms Significant Ni-Co Discovery at Itapitanga, page-113

Yes about 70% roughly ..... as sulphidic nickel deposits are roughly 30% of current world deposits which are largely located in Africa and Canada ....and a good chunk in Western Australia as well. Interesting though is the inverse relationship to production where roughly only 30% ( 1990 ) has been brought to market from Laterite production .

This relationship has promulgated some great new methods in Nickel extractions......which are much more environmental friendly and which introduce a recycling ethos into their flow sheets. After this weeks announcement , I would think this is now a critical area for success in general for this jurisdiction.

Anyway , it only stands to reason that even Australia - who has a fairly large Laterite distribution would be at the cutting edge of new processing tech in this area : - This is only one example of several new technological process currently being investigated or practised out there ATM.

An environmentally friendly processing method
In collaboration with the Sydney-based SME Direct Nickel, we are testing a new extraction process that could make millions of tonnes of untapped nickel laterite reserves economically viable.
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CSIRO and Direct Nickel have carried out full-scale testing of the process in a pilot plant at CSIRO Perth. ©Damien Smith
Direct Nickel has developed a more cost-effective and efficient way to extract nickel from laterites using small amounts of nitric acid.
About 95 per cent of the nitric acid can be recycled and re-used as a processing reagent, which vastly reduces the amount of waste produced and avoids the costly neutralisation and disposal of used acid.
With only a few kilograms of nitric acid used per tonne of laterite compared to at least half a tonne of sulfuric acid per tonne, this new method offers a more environmentally sustainable and cost-effective processing option.
To facilitate the transition from laboratory-scale to industrial-scale processing a mineral processing CSIRO invested in a pilot plant at our Waterford site (Perth), for large-scale testing of the new method. The new process has been successfully demonstrated at pilot scale.
The results

Helping Australian SMEs break into a global market
Direct Nickel have signed an agreement with Indonesian mining company, PT ANTAM, to cooperate in the development of nickel laterite deposits and processing plants in Indonesia.
The agreement promises to significantly improve the efficiency and economics of nickel laterite processing and unlock the world’s nickel laterite supply.
This is an example of how CSIRO is working with Australian SMEs to increase their global impact and deliver benefit to the Australian economy through improved export potential.