China’s Nickel-Free EV Batteries Hit Indonesia’s Nickel Plan: New Report

China’s shift toward nickel-free EV batteries is complicating Indonesia’s effort to turn its huge nickel reserves into the backbone of a domestic EV industry, according to a new report that says the shift is reshaping one of the world’s most important mineral sectors. ...

Indonesia Curbs New Nickel Smelters, Ongoing Projects to Proceed

Indonesia curbs new nickel smelters that produce intermediate materials, but will allow plants already under construction to move ahead following a government review, the Ministry of Industry said Monday. The government is driving Indonesia’s nickel industry downstream into battery-grade chemicals ...

China’s GEM Seals Nickel Deal with Indonesia’s SWF Danantara

China’s battery materials giant GEM has signed a head of agreement with Indonesia’s sovereign wealth fund Danantara to build a nickel and recycling hub. The agreement, confirmed by Danantara investment chief Pandu Sjahrir on Tuesday, marks the fund’s first ...

Indonesia Nickel Glut Triggers Mining, Smelter Moratorium Calls

China’s Tsingshan Holding Group, which produces nearly one-third of the world’s stainless steel, has suspended major production lines at its Indonesian nickel smelter, the clearest sign yet that the global nickel market is buckling under glut, collapsing prices, and demand, fueling urgent calls for a moratorium on ...

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

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 ...

Analysis from Cobus van Staden

The Pain of Un-Polarity

“THE G2 WILL BE CONVENING SHORTLY!”
This post by U.S. President Donald Trump in the run-up to his meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping last week may end up leaving a more lasting mark than the actual summit he attended.

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Indonesia’s Nickel Sector in Turmoil: Acquisition Proposal Amid Chinese Investor Bankruptcy Saga

Trouble seems to be brewing in Indonesia’s nickel sector.  One of the nation’s primary nickel smelters, PT Gunbuster Nickel Industry (GNI), is in an unprecedented crisis. Its troubles are deepened by its ties to a faltering Chinese parent company.

Photo Essay: Mounting Health Crisis in Indonesia’s Nickel Mining and Smelting Hub

It begins with a sharp sneeze, followed by a piercing wheeze, a relentless cough, or the struggle to catch a full breath—paired with the sting of irritated eyes. In Lelilef Sawai, a small village nestled beside Weda Bay Industrial Park, a massive hub of nickel downstream processing ...

Photo Essay: How Nickel Smelting Threatens Indigenous Tribe’s Ancestral Home in Indonesia

The deafening roar of bulldozers ripped through the tranquil forest near nickel smelting, scattering birds and shattering the harmony that had defined O Hongana Manyawa’s home for generations. In November 2023, a viral video captured two men from this nomadic tribe ...

[Seminar] Kompetisi Energi Baru: Jejak Industri China pada Nikel Indonesia

Tanggal: 15 Nopember, 2024 Waktu: 10:00-11:15 (WIB) Lokasi: Virtual (Zoom, Publik) Daftar disini: https://tinyurl.com/CGSPNikel ...

From Rich Soil to Flooded Plains: The Toll of Indonesia-China’s Nickel Ambition

Flash floods hit North Maluku, a province in the eastern part in Indonesia, for four days last July. Home to nickel-focused industrial activities of the Indonesia Weda Bay Industrial Park (IWIP), the floods swept across several villages nearby. Heavy rains ...

Nickel Nexus: Indonesia’s China-Backed Nickel-to-Battery Ambition

This report serves as a companion piece to CGSP’s Nickel Tracking Map. While the map provides detailed, up-to-date data on Indonesia's nickel industry, this report offers the broader context needed to understand that data. It traces the evolution of the industry, examines China’s involvement, and analyzes ...

U.S. Can Do More Than Just Blocking China-Invested Indonesian Nickel

This article is co-authored Muhammad Zulfikar Rakhmat, Director of the China-Indonesia Desk at CELIOS, and Yeta Purnama, a researcher at the Center of Economic and Law Studies (CELIOS). The potential U.S. decision to block nickel imports from Indonesia ...
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