(Bloomberg) -- Lygend Resources & Technology Co., a Chinese nickel producer and trader, is planning to start taking investor orders for an initial public offering in Hong Kong as early as September, according to people with knowledge of the matter.

The Ningbo-based company is working with advisers and is seeking to raise as much as $1 billion. After its first application for the listing in February lapsed, it is planning to refile in September and could make its trading debut as soon as the same month, one of the people said.

Deliberations are ongoing and details of the first-time share sale including size and timing could change. An external representative for Lygend declined to comment.

Lygend is the latest producer of battery raw materials to ride on the electric vehicle boom to raise funds in Hong Kong. Tianqi Lithium Corp., which was already listed in mainland China, raised $1.7 billion in a Hong Kong offering in July.

Established in 2009, Lygend produces and trades nickel ore and ferronickel, as well as manufactures and sells related equipment, according to its website. It has a presence in China as well as in Indonesia and the Philippines. The company had the largest nickel ore trading volume in China in 2019, 2020 and the first nine months of 2021, the website shows.

China International Capital Corp. and China Merchants Bank International are joint sponsors of Lygend’s first-time share sale.

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