Xstrata said on Tuesday it had shut down a ferronickel mining and processing operation in the Dominican Republic for at least four months due to soaring energy costs and lower nickel prices.

The Switzerland-based mining group said that its Falconbridge Dominicana (Falcondo) operation, which each year produced 29,000 tonnes or 2 per cent of the world's primary nickel, would be suspended until market conditions improved.