Nova Nickel Mine Ends Production After Almost a Decade; WA Site to Be Turned Into a Lithium Plant
The Nova nickel mine has ended production after almost a decade, IGO says, with $15m set aside for redundancy and retention. 253 live WA mining ads.
The Nova nickel mine in Western Australia has stopped mining and processing, IGO told the ASX on 9 November, ending almost a decade of production. Crews are now demobilising the site. Its new owner plans to turn the plant into a lithium concentrator, which keeps the door open for future jobs there.
What happened at the Nova nickel mine?
IGO said mining and processing at Nova have concluded after the final reconciliation of production. The Perth-based miner said the operation beat its life-of-mine guidance for nickel, copper and cobalt. Cash costs came in at $3.90 a pound of payable nickel, 8% below the lower end of updated guidance.
| Metal | Final production (FY26 + FY27) | Original guidance |
|---|---|---|
| Nickel | 21,340 t | 15,000 to 18,000 t |
| Copper | 9,517 t | 8,250 to 9,250 t |
| Cobalt | 765 t | 600 to 700 t |
In its September quarter report, IGO described Nova as one of the last nickel operations still running in WA. Managing director Ivan Vella thanked the Nova team and contractors in the 9 November release "right through to the final tonne".
What does the closure mean for Nova workers?
IGO has not published a headcount for the closure. Its September quarter report shows the cost of winding down staff. The June quarter result included $15.0 million of redundancy and retention accruals tied to the end of mine life. IGO did not say how many people that covered.
The quarterly report also recorded a fall in hours worked at Nova as operations ramped down towards closure. Cash production costs fell in line with lower activity. The Nova team is now completing demobilisation, according to the 9 November release.
Will the Nova site reopen as a lithium plant?
Global Lithium Resources, based in West Perth, signed a binding agreement in July to buy the company that owns Nova. Its September quarter report says the deal includes a 1.8 million tonne a year concentrator, a 500-bed operating camp, a 26.6 megawatt power station and a sealed runway.
Global Lithium plans to mine ore at its Manna project, 110 km east of Kalgoorlie, and truck it 135 km by road to a modified Nova plant. Concentrate would then travel a further 370 km to the Port of Esperance. The company says the study will feed into a Final Investment Decision, which has not yet been made. Global Lithium has also signed a binding scheme deed for a takeover by Titan Australia Mining. No timetable for hiring at the converted plant has been published.
What it means for Perth and Goldfields job seekers
For displaced Nova workers, the wider WA mining market is still advertising. On 9 November, Jobs In Perth showed 253 live mining jobs in Western Australia placed directly by employers. Of the 50 newest, Mineral Resources posted 22, Rio Tinto 19, BHP 6 and Fortescue 3. Twenty-two of those 50 were FIFO roles, and 11 closed within seven days. None stated an annual salary.
Closer to the Goldfields, we listed 22 live mining jobs in Kalgoorlie, all from Mineral Resources. Nineteen of them were FIFO. Across the state, our feed had 132 live FIFO jobs in WA.
Processing and plant skills are scarce in current ads. Only 5 of the 50 newest WA mining ads mentioned nickel, lithium, processing, plant or metallurgy work.
How we reported this
- Production, cost, demobilisation and sale timing come from IGO's ASX release of 9 November 2026.
- The redundancy and retention accruals and the description of Nova come from IGO's September 2026 Quarterly Activities Report (29 October 2026).
- Plans for the Nova plant come from Global Lithium Resources' quarterly activities report for the period ended 30 September 2026.
- Jobs In Perth figures are live direct-from-employer ads in our feed, observed on 9 November 2026. Recruitment agency and aggregator ads are not included.
- Cover image: AI-generated illustration, not a photo of the event.
Sources
About this reporting
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