JAKARTA, June 29 (Xinhua) -- Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto on Sunday attended a groundbreaking ceremony for a major electric vehicle (EV) battery megaproject in Karawang, West Java.
With a joint investment of nearly 6 billion U.S. dollars, the initiative will encompass nickel mining and processing, battery materials production, battery manufacturing, and recycling.
Indonesia is currently the world's largest producer of nickel and holds the biggest-known reserves of the metal, an essential component in EV batteries.
The project is a joint operation between Indonesia's state-owned miner PT Aneka Tambang (Antam), the state-owned investment holding company PT and Indonesia Battery Corporation (IBC), in collaboration with Chinese firm Ningbo Contemporary Brunp Lygend Co., Ltd. (CBL).
"This groundbreaking is proof of our leaders' seriousness in collaborating with our partners and our friends in China. We can work together on a program that I think can be called colossal, an extraordinary breakthrough," Prabowo said in his speech.
Indonesia's Energy and Mineral Resources Minister Bahlil Lahadalia said that the project is expected to create 35,000 jobs and contribute up to 42 billion dollars annually to Indonesia's GDP.
Bahlil noted that the plant will have the capacity to supply batteries for 300,000 vehicles, which would help reduce Indonesia's fuel imports by approximately 300,000 kiloliters per year.
He added that the project aligned with Prabowo's vision for more equitable national development. While it was launching in Java, about three-quarters of the total investment is set to be directed to North Maluku province.
