Ford Motor Co. will take a direct stake in a battery-nickel plant under construction in Indonesia, deepening its role in the supply chain as carmakers try to secure materials for electric vehicles.

The Asian country exported 31.7 million tons of coal last year.

According to local media reports, Ottawa has said that any takeover bid for Teck would go through a rigorous approvals process.

CaNickel Mining (TSXV: CML) has granted Cobalt One Energy an option to purchase CaNickel’s Bucko Lake nickel project for C$80 million ($59m). The mine is located about 110 km southwest of Thompson, Manitoba, near the town of Wabowden.

Russian mining and metals giant Nornickel has raised its global nickel surplus estimate for the current year due to lower than expected consumption in the battery sector, the company said in a market report.

Plans to construct a state-of-the-art plant to produce ferroalloys in Ekibastuz, Pavlodar Region, with a production capacity of 80,000 tons of ferrosilicon annually, were announced during a Dec.

Explorer Premium Nickel has announced a C$20-milion equity and debt financing package, which will provide the company with sufficient funds to meet its business objectives and liquidity requirements for another year.

Indonesia has moved a step closer to the early retirement of the privately owned Cirebon-1 coal-fired power station, a milestone deal that could shutter the plant nearly seven years early and create a blueprint for others to follow.