The riots sparked last month by electoral reform in the French-controlled territory has deepened a crisis for New Caledonia's loss-making nickel sector.

In April, TMC and SGS produced the world’s first nickel sulphate directly from seafloor polymetallic nodules.

By 2025, the global battery industry will be able to produce more than five times as many cells as the world will need, BNEF forecasts.

The company already listed nickel cathode from its Dingxing plant on the LME in the second quarter.

Stable supply of critical minerals is considered crucial, as South Korea lacks natural resources.

The company is in talks to secure a stake sale to Glencore ahead of the listing as Ceria sets out to build an $8 billion nickel complex.

The two aim to produce the key commodity used in lithium-ion batteries and processing it without needing water, chemicals or reagents.

The company has decided to "split" the project by submitting two separate EIAs that collectively cover the full life of the project.