SK Innovation, page-1203

Starting to get a proper sighter on just what SKI’s medium to long term plans are and this article (from “Skinnonews” their own newsletter) confirms a few things for me. Apologies google translate is required but it is well worth the read.

https://skinnonews.com/archives/59872

From it we can glean the main problem they see that will flow on to their ev/ess/etc batteries price competitiveness, in the medium to long term, is the instability, both in price and supply, in the procurement of raw materials.

It declares that they are seriously looking at tackling the issue with, yes, recycling. They state they have developed unique technology for extracting lithium hydroxide that also works on ni and co sulphates and that in the medium to long term they can see that’s where the bulk of their raw materials will originate.

The good news imo is that in the current time frame they are committed to the Sconi project. Why? They just cannot afford the time in implementing another plan that’s going to feed their battery plants under construction. If they pause any longer they run the risk of giving back crucial time advantage they have created by being amongst the leading group of early market penetrators and falling well behind on signed delivery contracts.

They definitely don’t want to be stuck with the prospect of buying on market 70000 tonnes of nickel sulphate at around 1.1B in an ascending trajectory, not that they would be able to source that bulk easily. So their best option in this early stage of the game is to use the clout of their binding off take agreement mustering financing from both home and here which imo they see as the most cost effective way of getting the initial supply required. You can almost guarantee they have sliced it every which way, as they have done in Europe, the US and now with green financing to boot, what’s being negotiated right now will be the method of the very least expenditure on their part.