Battery evolution erodes Indonesia's nickel edge

Smoke rises on Sept 21, 2022, from a nickel smelter operated by China’s Virtue Dragon Nickel Industry in Konawe, Southeast Sulawesi. The government has maintained an export ban on nickel ore since January 2020 in order to develop Indonesia’s downstream industry. - AFP

JAKARTA: Indonesia may need to find a different strategy to achieve its aspiration of developing a downstream nickel industry, some experts say, as the electric vehicle (EV) industry looks to alternatives to the metal that the country has in abundance.

Andry Satrio Nugroho, an economist at the Institute for Development of Economics and Finance (INDEF), told The Jakarta Post on Tuesday (March 6) that rethinking the downstream policy was becoming increasingly important, as the shift from nickel-based EV batteries to lithium iron phosphate (LFP) batteries was expected to gain momentum in the rapidly changing market.