There are valuable lessons to be learned for Australians perhaps surprised by BHP’s decision to mothball its Nickel West operations just when nickel and other battery metals seem on the cusp of a new industrial future dominated by electric vehicles and electricity storage.

The global nickel market has been upended by a headlong rush of Chinese investors into lower-cost Indonesian nickel production, and BHP has shown its characteristic discipline to withdraw until the global market is better balanced rather than carry on losing $50 million a month on its nickel operations.