Not far behind sits a second group of miners, some laterite-based, still exploring and proving up reserves and arranging financing.

"There's no shortage of nickel miners in WA (Western Australia)," said one metals dealer.

Junior miner Comet Resources NL earlier on Thursday said it had advanced its Ravensthorpe nickel project, geared to yield 25,000 tonnes of LME-grade cathode at a cash cost of US$0.70 a pound.

"Comet has previously been approached on a number of occasions with regard to take-off agreements for all of Ravensthorpe's production," Comet's managing director, Roj Jones said.

Other projects, some waiting for a turnaround in prices, are poised for development.

Declining stainless steel demand has clipped usage of nickel by its biggest customer, leading to a supply overhang.

In the US, stainless steel demandin the first nine months of 1998 was down 3.1 per cent and big declines in Europe and Asia also have occurred.

Metals dealers said a big discount in scrap prices to primary metal of around 20 per cent indicates a strong buyers' market for nickel.

"As soon as we see better prices, more projects will come out of the woodwork," predicted a trader.

Capricorn Resources Australia NL and LionOre Mining International Ltd have agreed to merge their interests in the high-grade Emily Ann and Maggie Hays deposits into a new listed company.

LionOre already is jointly exploring for nickel close by with Billiton Plc.

If each project was developed -- and analysts say that is doubtful -- it would have a substantial impact on world supplies and lead to closures of older and more high cost mines.

This year, the newcomers are expected to contribute about 17,000 tonnes of nickel to world supplies, broker JB Were estimates.

Teething problems aside, output from this first wave should climb to around 66,000 tonnes, ornearly 10 per cent of world production.

The laterite miners are able to boast much lower production costs than their sulphide-based counterparts, such as neighbouring WMC Ltd, largely due to credits paid for cobalt, which accompanies the nickel.

The first mine on stream, Cawse, owned by Centaur Mining and Exploration Ltd, has said it will ship its first nickel cathode to customers early in February, eventually building up to annual production of some 8,700 tonnes of nickel and 2,000 tonnes of cobalt.

The project has an estimated cash cost of US$0.94 a pound -- less than half the current market value -- based on a cobalt price of $10 a lb.

About two months later, Anaconda Nickel Ltd and Preston Resources NL are set to commence production. Anaconda is targeting annualised output of 45,000 tonnes of nickel and 3,000 tonnes of cobalt from its Murrin Murrin project. Preston's Bulong mine is designed to yield 9,000 tonnes of nickel and 1,000 tonnes of cobalt a year.

At current prices for both metals,each of the miners expects to operate profitably.

Cobalt prices sank to as low as $5 a pound in recent weeks but have since recovered to between $10 and $16.20 a lb, metals dealers said.

"All these projects have breathed a sigh of relief after cobalt prices recovered," a metals trader said.