Ardea Resources inks agreement with Japanese firms for nickel-cobalt project feasibility

(Reuters) - Nickel sulphide explorer Ardea Resources Ltd said on Wednesday it has signed a non-binding agreement with a Japanese consortium to carry out a feasibility assessment at its Kalgoorlie Nickel Project Goongarrie Hub in Western Australia.

The consortium comprises Sumitomo Metal Mining, Mitsubishi Corp and Mitsui & Co Ltd, Ardea said.

The Perth headquartered company said that the agreement provides a framework for the consortium and Ardea to negotiate a binding agreement to complete the Kalgoorlie Nickel Project Goongarrie Hub definitive feasibility study.

The agreement also has provisions for the companies to plan a final investment decision and jointly secure project development funding to make the project a significant producer of nickel-cobalt used in the lithium-ion battery sector.

The move comes amid Tokyo's push for investments into mines of minerals used in batteries as it reinforces alliances with resource-rich countries such as Australia, underscoring a global rush towards decarbonisation.

Ardea's shares are up nearly 54%, on track for their best trading day ever.

In a separate exchange filing, Ardea projected the total capital cost of the Kalgoorlie Nickel Project Goongarrie Hub to be A$3.18 billion ($2.13 billion) and said mining optimisation studies projected production of about 30,000 tonnes of nickel and 2,000 tonnes of cobalt per annum for more than 40 years.

($1 = 1.4961 Australian dollars)

(Reporting by Nausheen Thusoo in Bengaluru; Editing by Savio D'Souza and Dhanya Ann Thoppil)