[SMM Analysis] did the massive tsunami in Indonesia affect local nickel producers?

Published: Dec 24, 2018 15:28

Save

SMM12 24-the Indonesian National Anti-disaster Agency confirmed that Indonesia's Sunda Strait near Wandan Province on the 22nd local time was hit by the tsunami. It is reported that the tsunami was caused by the eruption of the Krakatoa volcano in the Sunda Strait. According to the latest news from the Associated Press, the death toll from the tsunami in Indonesia has risen to 281, with more than 1000 injured.

Indonesian authorities have warned that more deadly tsunamis could hit Indonesia's coastline in the coming days as volcanic eruptions have not stopped.

Sutopo Purwo Nugroho, a spokesman for the Indonesian National disaster reduction Agency, warned Sunday that as long as the volcano remains active, more tsunamis are likely. "We remind people to be cautious," Sutopo said. "agencies continue to analyze the causes of the tsunami. Mount Krakatoa continues to erupt, which could trigger a new round of tsunamis.

After Saturday's disaster, Sutopo called on Indonesia to develop a new tsunami warning system to help protect citizens living in areas of structural instability.

Indonesia's tsunami in October killed more than 2000 people off the west coast of Sulawesi and caused a high death toll because of a lack of warning.

According to (BMKG), the Indonesian Bureau of meteorology, climatology and geology, the eruption of volcano Anak Krakatau in the Sunda Strait between Java and Sumatra triggered a series of underwater landslides and triggered a massive tsunami.

The most affected cities are Xileng (Serang), Bandi Lan (Pandeglang), and Zilegong (Cilegon) in Wandan Province, which are closer to erupting volcanoes.

SMM learned that there are two ferronickel production plants in Wandan province, and SMM will continue to pay attention to whether production is affected, with an average monthly output of about 500metal tons, accounting for less than 1 per cent of high nickel pig iron production in Indonesia in mid-November.

Indonesia tsunami nickel capacity output

Data Source Statement: Except for publicly available information, all other data are processed by SMM based on publicly available information, market communication, and relying on SMM's internal database model. They are for reference only and do not constitute decision-making recommendations.

For any inquiries or for more information, please contact: lemonzhao@smm.cn

For more information on how to access our research reports, please contact:service.en@smm.cn

Related News

28 mins ago

[SMM Stainless Steel Flash] Šefčovič Confirms in Writing: SMEs Must Pay for EU Steel Regulation to Work

EU Trade Commissioner Šefčovič responded on September 1 to a written parliamentary question asking why SMEs were not exempted from the dual burden of CBAM and the Steel Regulation, stating explicitly: "As SMEs represent a significant share of EU operators active in the steel sector, it is not possible to exempt them from the application of the Steel Regulation. This would otherwise undermine the effectiveness of the Steel Regulation." This means small and mid-sized stainless steel importers, processors, and distributors must simultaneously bear the 50% out-of-quota steel tariff and CBAM carbon costs, with the Commission explicitly framing the economic burden on SMEs as a necessary feature, not a flaw, of the policy design. Eurostat data shows large enterprises accounted for 61% of steel import value in 2023, with SMEs at 38.6%, yet no full cumulative impact assessment for SMEs has been published. Critics note the 50-tonne CBAM threshold effectively covers only occasional importers rather than genuine steel traders, and that exceeding the threshold triggers liability on the full annual import volume.

28 mins ago

33 mins ago

[SMM Stainless Steel Flash] Spanish Exporters Call to Suspend ETS and CBAM Amid Rising Steel Cost Pressures

Spain's Club de Exportadores e Inversores Españoles published a technical note calling for the suspension of EU ETS and CBAM and alignment of carbon prices with levels faced by competitors. The report identifies ETS and CBAM together as acting like an "internal tariff" on European production, with costs passed through electricity, steel, and aluminum prices to downstream processors, while offering no protection to European exporters in third-country markets. For the stainless steel industry, the impact is particularly pronounced: the EU's 50% out-of-quota steel tariff combined with halved quotas has added approximately €1,654 to the average vehicle's steel costs, while hot-rolled coil prices have risen more than 35% since October 2025, far exceeding the Commission's own impact assessment assumption of a 3.25% increase. With CBAM set to expand to 150–180 additional CN codes, compliance cost pressures on the stainless steel supply chain will intensify further, disproportionately burdening small and mid-sized processors and distributors while large steel producers buffer the impact with decades of accumulated free ETS allowances.

33 mins ago

39 mins ago

[SMM Stainless Steel Flash] EU Stainless Slab Imports Bypass Tariffs; ArcelorMittal Ends Duisburg Steelmaking

The EU's steel safeguard measures impose a 50% out-of-quota duty on finished stainless steel imports, but semi-finished slabs remain largely outside their scope, creating a significant gap. Indonesian stainless steel slabs continue to flow into Europe in large volumes: Indonesia exported approximately 330,000 tonnes of stainless steel slabs to Italy in 2025, with EU-bound shipments already exceeding 123,000 tonnes this year, as European mills, particularly in Italy, import Indonesian semi-finished slabs for local rolling and processing to bypass the tariff burden on direct finished product imports. Meanwhile, Eurostat data shows EU stainless steel flat product imports fell 35% YoY in H1 2026, with overall stainless imports down 21%, as market uncertainty created by protectionist policies dampened buying appetite. ArcelorMittal's announcement of crude steel production closure at Duisburg further highlights the double standard in EU steel policy — European major producers simultaneously lobbying for finished product protection while importing large volumes of semi-finished material to circumvent the very quotas and tariffs created for their benefit, with the Commission turning a blind eye. Critics note that the melt-and-pour rule taking effect October 1 may be the first genuine policy tool capable of closing this loophole, by requiring traceability back to the original melting location regardless of where subsequent processing occurs.

39 mins ago