News: PM1 Pure Minerals inks non-binding deal with LG Chem for supply of nickel, cobalt

Oct 15 (Reuters) - Australia's Pure Minerals (PM1) said on Thursday it signed a non-binding offtake agreement with South Korean battery supplier LG Chem Ltd 051910.KS for the supply of nickel and cobalt.

LG Chem, which counts Tesla Inc TSLA.O and Hyundai Motor Co 005380.KS as customers, will look to buy 10,000 tonnes of nickel and 1,000 tonnes of cobalt from the company's Townsville Energy Chemicals Hub (TECH) in Queensland state.

Nickel and cobalt are among key minerals used to make batteries for electric vehicles.

The offtake agreement will initially run for three to five years and LG Chem may help to finance Pure Mineral's TECH project to raise capacity to meet its needs, the company said.

"With LG Chem's involvement, there is now potential to scale up the size of the TECH Project to one which offers even more attractive capital efficiency," Chief Executive Officer Stephen Grocott said in a statement.