Vale Indonesia: Danantara Interested in Investing in Three Nickel Smelters

Director and Chief Project Officer of PT Vale Indonesia Tbk (INCO), Muhammad Asril, stated that the Investment Management Agency (BPI) Danantara is interested in investing in three of Vale Indonesia's nickel processing facility projects.

"I can say that the investment opportunity is open, and to my knowledge, there are initial discussions with Danantara to join the three development projects," said Asril in Jakarta, Thursday, September 11, 2025.

The first project is being developed in collaboration with Zhejiang Huayou Cobalt—a cobalt, nickel, and lithium producer from China—and Ford Motor Company—a multinational automotive company from the United States—in Pomalaa, Kolaka, Southeast Sulawesi.

The second project is located in Sambalagi, Morowali, Central Sulawesi, and is being built with GEM Co., Ltd.—a battery materials manufacturing company from China.

Meanwhile, the third project, also established with Zhejiang Huayou Cobalt, is located in Sorowako, East Luwu, South Sulawesi.

According to Asril, the involvement of Danantara and other investors in these projects will strengthen the funding base and accelerate the realization of the development. He emphasized the company's commitment to using environmentally friendly energy in the three smelter projects to support decarbonization efforts.

He explained that approximately 80 percent of the energy needs for the Pomalaa nickel smelter project are met through heat recovery—a technology to capture waste heat from various production processes for reuse—while the rest comes from liquefied natural gas (LNG).

In Sambalagi, Morowali, the project is located within an international green industrial park, with energy supply sourced entirely from renewable sources such as heat recovery, solar panels, and biomass. "In Morowali, 100 percent of the energy is renewable-based and does not use LNG," Asril said.

Source: https://www.tempo.co/ekonomi/vale-indonesia-danantara-minat-investasi-di-3-smelter-nikel-2069005

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