French mining and metallurgical group Eramet reported a significant financial recovery in the first half of 2026, with adjusted EBITDA rising 45% to €276 million compared with €191 million in H1 2025, according to a press release published by the company on July 29, 2026. The group's adjusted free cash-flow turned positive at €7 million, compared with a negative €266 million in the same period last year, reflecting tighter capital expenditure discipline, working capital optimisation, and improved operational performance across most divisions. Net debt, restated for SLN's net cash position, stood at €2,046 million as of June 30, 2026, broadly stable versus year-end 2025.
The nickel division, which excludes the New Caledonian entity SLN from Eramet's key performance metrics, posted adjusted EBITDA of €56 million in H1 2026, up 10% from €51 million in H1 2025, despite a 3% decline in adjusted turnover to €225 million. The improvement was driven by stronger nickel ore pricing in Indonesia and gains from the group's NPI off-take arrangement. On the nickel market, Eramet highlighted that LME prices averaged $17,757 per tonne of nickel in H1 2026, up 16% compared with H1 2025, reflecting persistent uncertainties around Indonesian ore supply.
The SMM NPI 10-12% index averaged $14,013 per tonne, up 18% year-on-year. For H2 2026, the market consensus for LME nickel prices currently averages around $17,650 per tonne, according to Eramet's analysis based on a panel of sell-side and market analysts. Eramet's Indonesian nickel operation, PT Weda Bay Nickel (PT WBN), in which Eramet holds an indirect 38.7% interest, faced a sharply reduced mining quota in 2026.
PT WBN was granted an initial RKAB (annual production and sales permit) of only 12 million wet metric tonnes (Mwmt), down more than 70% from the 42 Mwmt eventually authorised in 2025. External ore sales totalled 9.4 Mwmt in H1, down 15% year-on-year, with the mine placed into care and maintenance in May after exhausting the initial quota. PT WBN has since filed a request with Indonesian authorities for an upward revision of the 2026 RKAB, citing the substantial ore requirements of the IWIP industrial park, estimated at more than 110 Mwmt per year.
The new Indonesian HPM formula, introduced in mid-April 2026 by the Ministry of Energy and Mineral Resources via Decree No. 144/2026, materially altered ore pricing dynamics. The revised formula now incorporates the value of other metals contained in the ore, including cobalt, iron and chromium.
As a result, the HPM reference price for 1.6% saprolite rose 70% to $46.4 per wet metric tonne, while the market price index SMM CIF 1.6% increased by 37% to $69 per wet metric tonne. The HPM for 1.2% limonite was up 95%, though the formula has not yet been applied given declining profitability at HPAL processing plants. Global primary nickel demand rose 6% to 1.8 million tonnes of nickel in H1 2026, supported by a 4% increase in stainless-steel consumption and a 13% jump in battery-related demand.
However, global primary nickel production fell 4% to 1.7 million tonnes, driven by a 10% decline in Indonesian NPI output and a 6% drop in HPAL project output, partly offset by gains in traditional ferronickel and Chinese NPI. The supply-demand balance for class I and class II nickel returned to a slight deficit, even as LME and SHFE inventories rose in Q2 to reach 376,000 tonnes of nickel at end-June, equivalent to approximately five weeks of consumption. For H2 2026, Eramet expects demand for primary nickel to continue growing, driven by stainless-steel production in China and India as well as higher growth in nickel-based battery demand.
Primary nickel production is projected to gradually recover, though HPAL plants are expected to face significant disruptions in Q3 due to rising sulphur prices. Subject to regulatory developments in Indonesia, the nickel market could move closer to rebalancing but is expected to remain in overall deficit for the year. Beyond nickel, Eramet's lithium division delivered a substantial turnaround, with EBITDA reaching €61 million in H1 2026 compared with a loss of €37 million a year earlier, driven by the ramp-up of the Centenario Direct Lithium Extraction plant in Argentina.
The plant reached 90% of its nameplate capacity in June. Lithium carbonate production totalled 8,440 tonnes of lithium carbonate equivalent (t-LCE), up from just 710 t-LCE in H1 2025. The SMM battery-grade lithium carbonate price index averaged $20,987 per tonne in H1 2026, up 142% year-on-year.
The H2 2026 market consensus stands at approximately $23,100 per tonne. The manganese division, Eramet's largest by revenue, generated EBITDA of €209 million, up 6% from H1 2025. The CRU CIF China 44% manganese ore price index averaged $5.24 per dry metric tonne unit in H1 2026, up 13% year-on-year.
The H2 2026 market consensus for high-grade manganese ore is currently set at around $5.2 per dmtu, a level Eramet described as appearing high relative to the current price index. The mineral sands division suffered a severe setback following a fire in February at its Wet Concentration Plant in Senegal, which caused a production halt and forced the recognition of a €112 million asset impairment charge. EBITDA for the division fell 77% to €12 million.
Mineral sands production was limited to 177,000 tonnes of heavy mineral concentrate, down 64% year-on-year. The total net cash impact of the fire is estimated at approximately €45 million in 2026. On the balance sheet front, Eramet confirmed that its adjusted leverage ratio improved to 4.5 times adjusted EBITDA at end-June 2026, from 5.5 times at end-December 2025.
The group's credit ratings stand at B2 at Moody's (stable outlook) and B at Fitch (negative outlook). A capital increase of up to €500 million, approved in principle by shareholders at the May 2026 general meeting, is planned for Q4 2026 and described by management as essential to the overall funding plan. The group also confirmed it has received several non-binding expressions of interest from potential investors.
Group capital expenditure is estimated between €250 million and €290 million for the full year 2026. The group maintained all of its 2026 operational guidance, including transported manganese ore volumes of 6.4 to 6.8 million tonnes, lithium carbonate production of 17 to 20 kt-LCE, and mineral sands HMC production of 300 to 400 kt-HMC.
Source: globenewswire.com