Honiara, Solomon Islands — On August 12 local time, the first shipment of 75,000 tons of laterite nickel ore from the Isabel Nickel Mine Project in the Solomon Islands, undertaken by a consortium formed by China Overseas Engineering Group（COVEC） and Shanghai Civil Engineering Co,.Ltd. Of CREC, was successfully loaded and officially departed from the offshore anchorage, marking the project’s full transition into large-scale operations.
Nickel ore is a key raw material for industries including stainless steel and new-energy batteries. The Solomon Islands possesses abundant reserves of high-quality laterite nickel ore. Since construction commenced, the project team has actively overcome challenges including the island’s prolonged rainy season, complex sea conditions, short windows for offshore operations, and difficulties in cross-border coordination. The team successively completed the construction of temporary facilities in the mining area and the extraction of laterite nickel ore, while advancing land leveling, the construction of a large-scale ore drying yard, an offshore barge transfer platform, and an ore screening and transfer system. Supporting utility, environmental restoration, and commercial inspection facilities were also completed, laying a solid foundation for the project’s commencement of production and operations.
To ensure the successful shipment of the first vessel of laterite nickel ore, the construction team advanced technical research and development, addressing technical challenges such as ore moisture-content control and operations under complex sea conditions, and completed integrated commissioning of the entire process from mining and excavation to offshore transshipment. The team made full use of the available construction window during the rainy season, coordinating construction and loading schedules, refining operating procedures, strictly adhering to maritime safety requirements, strengthening cargo stowage and trimming management, and taking stringent measures to prevent the risk of ore liquefaction at sea. Through continuous 24-hour operations, the team efficiently completed maritime joint inspections, commercial inspection, draft surveys and weighing procedures, connecting the entire industrial chain from mining and transshipment to ocean-going export and successfully completing the first shipment.
