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Business Recorder
30-06-2025
- Business
- Business Recorder
Indonesia begins $5.9bn EV battery project despite environment fears
JAKARTA: Indonesia broke ground Sunday on a $5.9 billion megaproject for EV battery production backed by Chinese giant CATL, despite NGOs raising concerns over a lack of environmental guarantees. Indonesia is the world's largest nickel producer and it is trying to capitalise on its vast reserves, with a 2020 export ban spurring a domestic industrial boom of the key metal used in EV batteries and stainless steel. The EV battery project will include a $4.7 billion investment on the eastern island of Halmahera and a $1.2 billion investment in West Java, energy minister Bahlil Lahadalia said in a speech alongside President Prabowo Subianto. 'According to my calculation, it won't take long, in probably between five to six years we will be able to reach energy self-sufficiency,' Prabowo said at a groundbreaking ceremony in Karawang, West Java. Bahlil said the Halmahera complex will focus on mining, smelting and production of cathodes which are a key component in rechargeable batteries. The West Java complex will focus on battery cell production, the minister said. The two politicians did not say when the megaproject was slated to be operational, but Indonesian officials have said a CATL plant in Halmahera would open in March next year. Alongside CATL, the Halmahera complex is backed by China's Zhejiang Huayou Cobalt and Indonesia's state-owned Antam. Climate Rights International (CRI) and Greenpeace Indonesia this week issued a call for greater assurances from Jakarta that measures were in place to protect the surrounding environment at the bigger complex in eastern Halmahera. Environmental group Mining Advocacy Network (Jatam) said in a statement Saturday that Jakarta was 'chasing vague economic growth while consciously ignoring the people's scream' to end damage to the environment and residents' livelihoods. Halmahera, a once-pristine island in the Maluku archipelago, has seen environmental damage increase as operations have grown at a large industrial park that hosts the world's largest nickel mine. A CRI report this month warned the Indonesian government was allowing environmental damage to go unchecked around the Weda Bay mine and the industrial park that hosts it. An AFP report last month detailed how the home of the nomadic Hongana Manyawa tribe was being eaten away by mining operations there.
Time of India
29-06-2025
- Business
- Time of India
Indonesia begins $5.9 bn EV battery project despite environment fears
Indonesia broke ground Sunday on a $5.9 billion megaproject for EV battery production backed by Chinese giant CATL, despite NGOs raising concerns over a lack of environmental guarantees. Indonesia is the world's largest nickel producer and it is trying to capitalise on its vast reserves, with a 2020 export ban spurring a domestic industrial boom of the key metal used in EV batteries and stainless steel. The EV battery project will include a $4.7 billion investment on the eastern island of Halmahera and a $1.2 billion investment in West Java, energy minister Bahlil Lahadalia said in a speech alongside President Prabowo Subianto. "According to my calculation, it won't take long, in probably between five to six years we will be able to reach energy self-sufficiency," Prabowo said at a groundbreaking ceremony in Karawang, West Java. Bahlil said the Halmahera complex will focus on mining, smelting and production of cathodes which are a key component in rechargeable batteries. The West Java complex will focus on battery cell production, the minister said. The two politicians did not say when the megaproject was slated to be operational, but Indonesian officials have said a CATL plant in Halmahera would open in March next year. Alongside CATL, the Halmahera complex is backed by China's Zhejiang Huayou Cobalt and Indonesia's state-owned Antam. Climate Rights International (CRI) and Greenpeace Indonesia this week issued a call for greater assurances from Jakarta that measures were in place to protect the surrounding environment at the bigger complex in eastern Halmahera. Environmental group Mining Advocacy Network (Jatam) said in a statement Saturday that Jakarta was "chasing vague economic growth while consciously ignoring the people's scream" to end damage to the environment and residents' livelihoods. Halmahera, a once-pristine island in the Maluku archipelago, has seen environmental damage increase as operations have grown at a large industrial park that hosts the world's largest nickel mine. A CRI report this month warned the Indonesian government was allowing environmental damage to go unchecked around the Weda Bay mine and the industrial park that hosts it. An AFP report last month detailed how the home of the nomadic Hongana Manyawa tribe was being eaten away by mining operations there.
The Sun
29-06-2025
- Business
- The Sun
Indonesia begins $5.9 bn EV battery project despite environment fears
JAKARTA: Indonesia broke ground Sunday on a $5.9 billion megaproject for EV battery production backed by Chinese giant CATL, despite NGOs raising concerns over a lack of environmental guarantees. Indonesia is the world's largest nickel producer and it is trying to capitalise on its vast reserves, with a 2020 export ban spurring a domestic industrial boom of the key metal used in EV batteries and stainless steel. The EV battery project will include a $4.7 billion investment on the eastern island of Halmahera and a $1.2 billion investment in West Java, energy minister Bahlil Lahadalia said in a speech alongside President Prabowo Subianto. 'According to my calculation, it won't take long, in probably between five to six years we will be able to reach energy self-sufficiency,' Prabowo said at a groundbreaking ceremony in Karawang, West Java. Bahlil said the Halmahera complex will focus on mining, smelting and production of cathodes which are a key component in rechargeable batteries. The West Java complex will focus on battery cell production, the minister said. The two politicians did not say when the megaproject was slated to be operational, but Indonesian officials have said a CATL plant in Halmahera would open in March next year. Alongside CATL, the Halmahera complex is backed by China's Zhejiang Huayou Cobalt and Indonesia's state-owned Antam. Climate Rights International (CRI) and Greenpeace Indonesia this week issued a call for greater assurances from Jakarta that measures were in place to protect the surrounding environment at the bigger complex in eastern Halmahera. Environmental group Mining Advocacy Network (Jatam) said in a statement Saturday that Jakarta was 'chasing vague economic growth while consciously ignoring the people's scream' to end damage to the environment and residents' livelihoods. Halmahera, a once-pristine island in the Maluku archipelago, has seen environmental damage increase as operations have grown at a large industrial park that hosts the world's largest nickel mine. A CRI report this month warned the Indonesian government was allowing environmental damage to go unchecked around the Weda Bay mine and the industrial park that hosts it. An AFP report last month detailed how the home of the nomadic Hongana Manyawa tribe was being eaten away by mining operations there.
Gizmodo
27-06-2025
- Business
- Gizmodo
Planned EV Battery Plant Is a ‘Death Sentence' for Uncontacted Indonesian Tribe
On Sunday, June 29, Indonesia will break ground on a $6 billion electric vehicle (EV) battery plant on Halmahera, the largest of the Maluku islands. The facility will mine the island's abundant nickel reserves and manufacture batteries on-site to reduce production costs in Indonesia, but a watchdog warns it could decimate an uncontacted tribe. The Hongana Manyawa—whose name means 'people of the forest' in their language—are one of the last nomadic hunter-gatherer peoples in Indonesia, according to Survival International. Some 3,500 of them live within Halmahera's rainforest, and roughly 500 remain uncontacted. Over the last several years, Indonesia's booming nickel-mining industry has deforested more than 13,000 acres (5,000 hectares) of Halmahera's tropical forests, destroying the Hongana Manyawa's homeland. This country is now the world's largest nickel producer, and its latest money grab poses a grave threat to the Hongana Manyawa, advocacy groups warn. 'This announcement is a death sentence for the uncontacted Hongana Manyawa,' said Caroline Pearce, head of Survival International, in a statement. 'Their home—the land that is theirs under international law—is being brazenly seized and destroyed to cater to global industries and global consumption.' 'Nickel and other mega-projects are often launched under the banner of green development but leave behind a trail of social and environmental harm,' said Brad Adams, Executive Director at Climate Rights International, in a statement. 'Communities are repressed, forests are cleared, and pollution goes unaddressed with impunity. This is a chance for the Prabowo government to show that it has learned from those failures.' The new plant, financially backed by China's Contemporary Amperex Technology Co. Limited (CATL), will integrate multiple components of EV battery production. Mining operations, smelting, nickel extraction, and production of precursors and cathodes will all take place on-site, according to the Indonesian news agency ANTARA. The project is one of 18 downstream industrial projects—valued at nearly $45 billion—that will break ground in Indonesia, ANTARA reports. According to a 2024 Survival International report, at least 19 mining companies are operating on the uncontacted Hongana Manyawa's land, including the largest and second-largest nickel mines in the world. Most of these facilities are mining nickel, and together, they span about 40% of the uncontacted people's territory. The Halmahera nickel rush is part of the Indonesian government's efforts to feed the global nickel demand for EV batteries. As of last year, the country accounted for 51% of the world's nickel mine production, according to the Institute for Energy Economics and Financial Analysis. Scrutiny from environmentalists recently drove Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto to cancel four nickel mining permits on the neighboring islands of Raja Ampat. 'The President has a special concern to ensure Raja Ampat remains a world-class tourist attraction and protect its sustainability,' Energy Minister Bahlil Lahadalia told reporters earlier this month. In 2024, more than 30,000 tourists visited these islands, contributing roughly $9.25 million to locally generated revenue, according to The Jakarta Post. The same can't be said for Halmahera, which lacks sufficient infrastructure to support tourism. Still, advocates hope that the Indonesian government will take similar steps to protect Halmahera and its people. 'The Indonesian government has shown it's prepared to cancel nickel mining to save tourism; it must now also do so to stop an appalling human rights atrocity,' Pearce said. 'By acting now and establishing a no-go zone for mining on the territory of the uncontacted Hongana Manyawa people, the government can prevent their annihilation.' This tribe isn't alone. A 2022 study found that 54% of critical mineral mining projects for essential components, like the nickel used in EV batteries, are located on or near indigenous lands. Of those projects, 29% impact lands that indigenous peoples manage or conserve. While the Western world may see the EV industry as a climate solution, its impact on rainforests—and the people that call them home—threatens to outweigh its benefits.
Straits Times
26-06-2025
- Business
- Straits Times
Environment fears over $7.65b Indonesia EV battery project: NGOs
The complex will encompass a process from nickel mining to production of cathodes. PHOTO: AFP JAKARTA - Environmental groups raised concerns on June 26 over a US$6 billion (S$7.65 billion) Indonesian EV battery megaproject backed by Chinese giant CATL which is set to open on a once-pristine island, as Jakarta exploits its huge supply of nickel. Indonesia is both the world's largest nickel producer and home to the biggest-known reserves, and a 2020 export ban has spurred a domestic industrial boom. Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto will inaugurate the project – also backed by China's Zhejiang Huayou Cobalt and Indonesia's state-owned Antam – in the east of Halmahera in Indonesia's Maluku islands on June 29. The complex will encompass a process from nickel mining to production of cathodes, state news agency Antara reported. But non-governmental organisations say Indonesia and the Chinese firms involved have not given assurances about environmental protections at the site, located just kilometres from a huge industrial park where spikes in pollution and deforestation have been reported. 'CATL, Huayou Cobalt, PT commit to respecting the rights of local communities and the environment before breaking ground,' said Mr Brad Adams, executive director at Climate Rights International, in a statement. 'Communities are repressed, forests are cleared, and pollution goes unaddressed with impunity. This is a chance for the Prabowo government to show that it has learned from those failures.' The presidential office did not immediately respond to an AFP request for comment. Halmahera hosts the world's largest nickel mine by production Weda Bay, where operations have grown and sparked reports of widespread environmental damage. Greenpeace Indonesia said the new project carried 'great responsibilities' and the environment and locals 'must not take a back seat' to powering electric vehicles. 'If the environment and the rights of our most vulnerable people are not prioritised will all pay a high price through worsening biodiversity and climate crises,' forest campaign team leader at Greenpeace Arie Rompas told AFP. A CRI report in June warned the Indonesian government was allowing environmental damage to go unchecked around Weda Bay. An AFP report in May detailed how the home of the nomadic Hongana Manyawa tribe was being eaten away by the mine. AFP Join ST's Telegram channel and get the latest breaking news delivered to you.
