Nanjing Hanrui Cobalt Co.,Ltd. (ASX: 300618) has announced plans for a significant capital investment in new nickel processing capacity. The company intends to construct a new production facility through its wholly-owned subsidiary, Ganzhou Hanrui New Energy Technology Co., Ltd., located in Ganzhou City, Jiangxi Province.

The project, named the "Annual Production of 40,000 Tons of Electrowon Nickel and 40,000 Tons (Nickel Metal Content) of Battery-Grade Nickel Sulfate Project," involves a total investment of 2.003 billion yuan. The funding for this initiative will be sourced from the company's own capital or through self-raised funds.

Strategic Rationale and Supply Chain Integration

This investment is strategically timed to leverage the company's upstream resource development. With the completion and commencement of operations at its nickel resource smelting base in Indonesia, a portion of the raw materials required for this new project will be directly supplied from the Indonesian facility.

This move enables the company to extend its business reach from upstream nickel raw materials downstream into high-purity refined products like electrowon nickel and nickel sulfate. It effectively creates a closed-loop ecosystem within the nickel industry chain, spanning from resource extraction to finished materials.

Enhancing the Core Business Portfolio

The development of this project is fully aligned with the company's strategic positioning to secure and develop nickel resources. It is designed to further perfect the company's integrated "cobalt-copper-nickel" industry chain strategy.

The initiative is expected to strengthen the company's main business operations, enhance its profitability and capacity for sustainable development, increase overall corporate benefits, and safeguard shareholder rights and interests.