LME plans to suspend the nickel brand of Nornickel’s Finnish plant from October 3

The LME declined to comment. Nornickel did not respond to a Reuters Request for comments.

Deliveries of nickel cathodes and briquettes from the production of Norilsk Nickel Harjavalta Oy will no longer be accepted for the LME nickel contract valid from October 3, the LME announced in two separate communications.

The LME, which is part of the Hong Kong Exchanges and Clearing Corporation, announced in January that it would temporarily or completely delist ten percent of the metal brands listed on it until their producers submitted their reports on responsible sourcing.

Harjavalta, one of Europe’s largest nickel refiners, has not yet completed its routine review of responsible mineral extraction, one of the sources said, adding that the process was likely to be completed before the LME’s October 3 deadline.

The plant has an annual production capacity of 65,000 tons of nickel, which it produces from raw materials of Russian or other origin. Nornickel itself produced 209,000 tons of nickel in 2023.

In order to comply with sanctions imposed by the US and UK in connection with the Russian invasion of Ukraine in 2022, the LME banned all Russian aluminium, copper and nickel produced from April 13 onwards from its system.

Nornickel’s Finnish plant was not affected by this decision.

(By Polina Devitt; editing by Jan Harvey)