Sumber Global Energy (SGER) Subsidiary, SMGA, Expands into the Nickel Smelter Business
Sun 02 Nov 2025, 12:46 PM
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A subsidiary of PT Sumber Global Energy Tbk. (SGER), PT Sumber Mineral Global Abadi Tbk. (SMGA) has officially entered the nickel smelting business to produce nickel matte. SMGA is moving into nickel in collaboration with PT Hengsheng Nee Energy Material Indonesia.
SMGA signed a Strategic Partnership Agreement with PT Hengsheng New Energy Material Indonesia (Hengsheng) on Friday (10/31/2025). Through this partnership, SMGA will acquire a portion of Hengsheng’s shares and collaborate on developing a converter smelter facility to upgrade low-grade nickel matte into high-grade nickel matte.
The smelter to be built will use Oxygen Enriched Side Blowing Furnace (OESBF) technology. This is a cutting-edge nickel refining technology that is efficient, environmentally friendly, and proven globally.
SMGA Director Hu Bo stated that this partnership is a strategic step to strengthen SMGA’s position in the global nickel industry supply chain and accelerate the transition to a green economy.
This move is also part of SMGA’s broader strategy to reinforce Indonesia’s downstream nickel value chain and support the development of a sustainable new-energy industry in the country.
“Bulk commodities such as nickel and coal do have cyclical ups and downs, but we are confident that demand for new-energy raw materials will continue to increase. SMGA wants to be at the forefront of transforming Indonesia’s mineral industry with a solid, sustainability-oriented downstream strategy,” said Hu Bo in an official statement, Sunday (11/2/2025).
He continued that SMGA’s investment in Hengsheng marks a new chapter in SMGA’s downstream strategy focused on increasing value by converting low nickel matte into high nickel matte. With this vertically integrated model, SMGA strengthens its position as a key player in Indonesia’s integrated nickel ecosystem from upstream to downstream.
Furthermore, global nickel demand for electric-vehicle batteries and energy storage systems is rising rapidly. Demand is projected to increase from 545,000 tons in 2024 to more than 1.5 million tons by 2030, growing at around 18.7% per year.
“This is a major opportunity we want to seize together with Hengsheng,” he said.
Under this partnership, SMGA will play an active role in supplying strategic raw materials such as coal, nickel ore, and black mass (recycled battery material), while ensuring the smooth procurement of converter smelter equipment so Hengsheng can operate at maximum capacity.
According to him, Hengsheng’s use of OESBF technology is one of the main factors behind this collaboration. The technology not only improves refining efficiency but also significantly reduces emissions and pollution, in line with the national industrial decarbonization agenda.
The SMGA–Hengsheng collaboration is expected to create strong synergies between SMGA’s extensive raw-material sourcing capabilities and Hengsheng’s advanced nickel-refining technology, while strengthening national industrial resilience amid rising global demand for clean-energy materials.
The partnership will take effect once stakeholder approvals are obtained and all regulatory prerequisites have been fulfilled.
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