BHP has entered a nickel supply agreement with electric vehicle and clean energy company Tesla Inc. The miner will supply Tesla with an undisclosed amount of the material from its Nickel West operations in Western Australia.

“Demand for nickel in batteries is estimated to grow by over 500% over the next decade, in large part to support the world’s rising demand for electric vehicles,” said BHP Chief Commercial Officer Vandita Pant. 

In addition to the supply agreement, the companies will collaborate on ways to make the battery supply chain more sustainable, with a focus on end-to-end raw material traceability using blockchain; technical exchange for battery raw materials production; and promotion of the importance of sustainability in the resources sector.

Further, BHP and Tesla will work together on energy storage solutions to identify opportunities to lower carbon emissions in their respective operations through increased use of renewable energy paired with battery storage. 

Source: BHP