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Executive Column: Eramet seeks bigger stake in Indonesia's nickel industry
Bruno Faour, director of Eramet Indonesia, speaks to The Jakarta Post’s Divya Karyza about the strategy of the French mining giant’s local subsidiary for providing an alternative to Chinese investments in Indonesia’s nickel industry.
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Bruno Faour, director of Eramet Indonesia (Eramet/Ahmad Rafli)
I
ndonesia has become the world’s biggest nickel producer on the back of a huge influx of Chinese capital into mining and smelting projects over the past four years. China’s large involvement in the sector could make it challenging for Indonesia to sell its battery-grade nickel to Western electric vehicle (EV) markets as Washington aims to curb Beijing’s role in EV supply chains.
Bruno Faour, director of Eramet Indonesia, spoke to The Jakarta Post’s Divya Karyza about the strategy of the French mining giant’s local subsidiary for providing an alternative to Chinese investments in Indonesia’s nickel industry.
Question: Is Eramet interested in establishing an end-to-end EV ecosystem in Indonesia with (transportation and logistics) Kalla Group?
Answer: First of all, as Eramet, we will not invest in EV batteries, but we consider establishing these types of partnerships with companies that could help us establish an end-to-end EV battery value chain. This is the objective of PT Eramet Bumi Sulawesi (EBS), which we established in 2023 with Kalla Group.
I'm very interested in working with Kalla [Group], because Kalla is a very important producer of hydropower. The idea is to have the mining company doing proper, sustainable mining, working together with green energy producers.
We have discussed this with many partners. Last year, we signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with Volkswagen’s battery department PowerCo and EV producer Stellantis to develop an EV battery ecosystem in Indonesia.
Today, we are identifying new mining sites and preparing to apply for mining permits.
