Tesla chairwoman tackles Canberra on tax breaks for nickel, lithium miners

Brad ThompsonFeb 27, 2024 – 2.55pm

Tesla chairwoman Robyn Denholm and CEO Elon Musk. none

Tesla chairwoman Robyn Denholm and Andrew Forrest-owned nickel miner Wyloo are working together in the fight for production tax credits and other support for the Australian critical minerals sector.

Ms Denholm is part of a critical minerals delegation, which includes Wyloo boss Luca Giacovazzi, scheduled to meet Resources Minister Madeleine King, Treasury officials and others in Canberra on Wednesday.

Tesla chairwoman Robyn Denholm and CEO Elon Musk. none

Tesla, a big end-user of critical minerals in its electric vehicles, helped pay for a report outlining the case for tax breaks for Australian nickel, lithium and other miners under a scheme modelled on assistance available in the US and in other jurisdictions.

Dr Forrest blasted Tesla founder Elon Musk at the National Press Club on Monday, saying Mr Musk should be publicly shamed for using “dirty” nickel sourced from Indonesia in his Tesla batteries.

Tesla and Wyloo have joined forces in lobbying the Albanese government for production tax credits, and Mr Musk last year baulked at investing in the Indonesian nickel industry that is flooding the global market with supply.

Mr Musk spent several years urging miners to boost nickel supply and was lobbied by green groups not to invest in Indonesia.

Tesla did not respond to requests for comment.

Last September, Ms Denholm warned that Australia risked losing out to the US, Europe and Asian trading partners unless it introduced tax breaks for battery-grade lithium processing.

Tesla has a five-year lithium offtake deal with Gina Rinehart-backed Liontown Resources, and agreed to buy lithium from the Wesfarmers’ Mount Holland mine that is now finally in production as far back as 2018.

Billionaire Chris Ellison’s Mineral Resources, Pilbara Minerals, Liontown and IGO Limited are the big lithium players who, along with Tesla, Wyloo, rare earths and vanadium companies, are behind the report on tax breaks commissioned by the Association of Mining and Exploration Companies.

The report estimated a 10 per cent production tax credit would cost the government $340 million across the forward estimates to fiscal 2028 and a further $1.69 billion from 2028-29 to 2034-35, while adding $2.4 billion to the size of the Australian economy and creating more than 4200 new jobs.

BHP warned the government last week that a tax break may not be enough to save its nickel business and thousands of jobs in WA, and called for a rethink on industrial relations changes and other policy settings.

The mining giant has said its nickel operations that have been losing about $50 million a month are unlikely to be profitable before the end of the decade and may be mothballed.

S&P Market Intelligence said this week that it expected nickel oversupply to continue well beyond 2025, with Indonesia likely to add 300,000 tonnes of capacity this year.

“At the same time, demand is vulnerable to China’s lower appetite for steel and slower growth in production of electric vehicle batteries,” it said.

However, S&P noted that low nickel prices were also hitting the profits of Indonesian nickel pig iron and nickel matte producers.

“Indonesia is cutting some planned expansion this year to conserve cash and other delays are possible,” it said.

S&P noted that if the nickel industry in Australia and other jurisdictions continued to collapse, car and battery makers could shift investment to Indonesia for security of supply and strengthen Indonesia’s position in the electric vehicle industry.

The government belatedly added nickel to its critical minerals list in the days before Prime Minister Anthony Albanese visited WA, where up to 10,000 jobs are at risk, but has held off on offering up any support measures.

Ms King talked up the prospect of production tax credits after industry crisis meetings in Perth, but there are doubts about whether she has any support for the tax break in cabinet.