Top Industries purchasing Nickel (Ni)
Major Individual Company Purchasers
Caution: This content was sourced and arranged by AI and thus may be subject to errors, biases, omissions, or antiquation.
This information can provide a general sense of industry dynamics, but may be unreliable in its specifics, or as an isolated basis for investment decisions.
| Rank | Industry | Volume (MT) | % Usage | Primary Applications |
| 1 | Stainless Steel (STS) | ~2,437,000 | 68.9% - 69.2% | Austenitic stainless steel for construction, appliances, and industrial equipment. |
| 2 | …Automotive (Non-Batt) | Included* | ~26.2% | Exhaust systems, chassis components, and decorative trim. |
| 3 | …Construction | Included* | ~15% - 20% | Structural reinforcements, roofing, and architectural cladding. |
| 4 | EV & Storage Batteries | ~520,000 | 14.7% | High-nickel cathodes (NCM811/NCM622) for long-range EV batteries. |
| 5 | Non-Ferrous Alloys | ~283,000 | 8.0% | Corrosion-resistant alloys (e.g., cupronickel) for marine and chemical use. |
| 6 | Specialty Steels | ~212,000 | 6.0% | High-strength engineering steels for automotive and machinery. |
| 7 | Electroplating | ~177,000 | 5.0% | Protective and decorative coatings for consumer goods and electronics. |
| 8 | Superalloys | ~35,000 | 1.0% | High-temperature components for aerospace jet engines and gas turbines. |
| 9 | Consumer Durables | ~25,000 | ~0.7% | Refrigerators, washing machines, and kitchen appliances. |
| 10 | Industrial Machinery | Trace | <0.5% | Valves, fittings, and heavy-duty industrial processing equipment. |
| 11 | Oil & Gas Infrastructure | Trace | <0.5% | Downhole tubing and subsea pipelines requiring corrosion resistance. |
| 12 | Aerospace (Structural) | Trace | <0.1% | High-strength landing gear and structural airframe components. |
| 13 | Electronics (Components) | Trace | <0.1% | Multilayer ceramic capacitors and lead frames. |
| 14 | Chemical Catalysts | Trace | <0.1% | Raney nickel for hydrogenation in chemical synthesis. |
| 15 | Marine Engineering | Trace | <0.1% | Desalination plants and heat exchangers. |
| 16-20 | Other Niche Markets | Trace | <0.1% | Coinage, medical implants, and research applications. |
Major Individual Company Purchasers
- Tsingshan Holding Group: A dominant force in global stainless steel and nickel pig iron, they are a massive purchaser and integrated producer of nickel for their operations in China and Indonesia.
- Toyota Motor Corporation: Purchases significant nickel through joint ventures, such as the October 2025 agreement with Sumitomo Metal Mining to mass-produce cathode materials for all-solid-state batteries.
- Jindal Stainless Limited: A top global importer of nickel, spending over $261 million annually to support its extensive stainless steel production in India.
- LG Energy Solution: A major purchaser of nickel-rich battery precursors (NCM811) for its global battery manufacturing plants, including those in Poland and Indonesia.
- Samsung SDI: Procures massive volumes of battery-grade nickel, often through specialized logistics partners, for its energy storage and EV battery divisions.
- POSCO Future M: A key purchaser of refined nickel and cathode active materials for the South Korean battery and automotive supply chain.
- BASF: A significant chemical industry purchaser that uses nickel for advanced battery materials and industrial catalysts.
- Hanwha Aero Engines: A major purchaser of nickel-based superalloys and materials for high-performance aerospace and defense applications.
Caution: This content was sourced and arranged by AI and thus may be subject to errors, biases, omissions, or antiquation.
This information can provide a general sense of industry dynamics, but may be unreliable in its specifics, or as an isolated basis for investment decisions.