Q&A: Indonesia’s Nickel Strategy Benefits China, Offers Cautionary Tale for Developing Nations, Says Researcher

Nickel industry workers rides a modified mini pick-up used as a local public transport in Halmahera island, North Maluku, Indonesia, amidst local traffic congestion and smoldering chimneys of nickel smelting and processing plant, August 2024. (CGSP / Mas Agung Wilis Yudha Baskoro)
Nickel industry workers rides a modified mini pick-up used as a local public transport in Halmahera island, North Maluku, Indonesia, amidst local traffic congestion and smoldering chimneys of nickel smelting and processing plant, August 2024. (CGSP / Mas Agung Wilis Yudha Baskoro)

Indonesia controls the world’s largest nickel reserves, crucial to powering electric vehicles and fueling the global green transition. But despite its natural advantage, the country finds itself missing out on the actual industrial gains.

Instead of building homegrown technological capacity, Indonesia’s nickel policies have largely delivered windfalls to foreign investors—especially Chinese state-linked firms.

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by Edwin Shri Bimo

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