Indonesia must utilize the momentum of electric vehicle development by immediately implementing the prohibition of export of low-rate nickel ores.
Moreover, Indonesia is one of the countries that has the largest nickel deposit in the world, so it is expected to produce electric car batteries at an affordable price.
Jonatan Handojo, founder of Indonesian Industrial Processing and Purification Companies Association (AP3I), said the government discourse to accelerate the prohibition of low-rate nickel ore exports in 2020 also aims to anticipate the electric car industry. Because the battery for electric cars uses nickel metal hydrate with a nickel rate of more than 70%.
"Well, with the position of Indonesia that has a large nickel deposit in the world should take advantage of this moment [ASAP], " He said, Tuesday (3/9/2019).
Based on data from the Geological Agency of the Ministry of Energy and Mineral Resources, Indonesia has a proven reserve for nickel ore of 698 million tonnes and a reserve of approximately 2.8 billion tonnes.
Jonatan hoped the government to immediately realize the prohibition, even if it can before President Joko Widodo was appointed in the coming October. He said if the nickel ore exports were given looseness until the end of the year, the nickel ore enjoyed by other countries would be greater.
During this time Indonesia only earned royalties from the sale of nickel ore at a price of only US $22 per tonne.
Through the acceleration of a moratorium on the export of nickel ore, Jonatan also believes that Indonesia's electric car production battery will be cheaper compared to foreign production batteries, given the amount of nickel deposits in Indonesia.
"Battery for electric cars made in Indonesia must be cheaper than the very expensive Tesla car battery," he said.
Source: Annisa Sulistyo Rini - Bisnis.com
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