According to the Jakarta Post, Ningbo Contemporary Brunp Lygend (CBL), a subsidiary of battery giant CATL New Energy Technology Co LTD, will invest $420 million in Indonesia's nickel mining and electric vehicle battery manufacturing industries.
Coordinating Minister for Maritime and Investment Affairs Luhut Binsar Panjaitan said, The deal involves cooperation between CBL and PT Aneka Tambang (Antam), a state-owned diversified mining company, and PT Industri Baterai Indonesia (IBI), a state-owned battery manufacturer.
CBL signed a framework agreement with Antam and IBI last year to develop an EV battery integration project in Indonesia.
The project consists of six parts: nickel mining; RKEF (rotary kiln furnace for the production of ferric nickel from laterite nickel ore); HPAL (high pressure acid leaching for extracting nickel and cobalt from laterite ores); Battery materials, battery recycling and battery manufacturing.
Global demand for nickel is growing rapidly due to its use as a key component in electric vehicle batteries. The United States Geological Survey (USGS) expects global nickel mine production to grow by 21% in 2022.
Indonesia and Australia have the world's largest nickel ore reserves, estimated at 21 million tonnes by the US Geological Survey.
