JAKARTADAILY.ID - The Ministry of Energy and Mineral Resources (MEMR) reported that the development of 12 smelter projects in Indonesia, including eight nickel smelters, is being hindered by financing problems.
The MEMR Mineral and Coal Director-General Ridwan Djamaluddin said during a hearing with the House of Representatives (DPR) Commission VII in charge of mining and energy, admitted that funding is one of the problems hampering the development of mineral processing facilities in Indonesia. "The 12 smelter projects need a total investment of US$4.5 billion," he said during the hearing on Wednesday.
He said that the 12 smelter projects are owned by Gulf Mangan Grup (producer of manganese), Bintang Smelter Indonesia (nickel producer), Macika Mineral Industri (nickel), Ang Fang Brothers (nickel), Teka Mining Resources (nickel), Mahkota Konaweeha (nickel), Arta Bumi Sentra Industri (nickel), Sinar Deli Bantaeng (nickel), Dinamika Sejahtera Mandiri (bauxite), Laman Mining (bauxite), Kalbar Bumi Perkasa (bauxite), and Smelter Nikel Indonesia (nickel).
Ridwan added that besides the funding problem, the smelter projects are also facing other obstacles, such as licensing process and procurement of power supply. "At least seven companies could not yet secure power supply for their smelter operations," he said.
According to him, the MEMR has been trying to help solve the problems by convening a series of meetings with the companies that develop the smelter projects. "For some companies, we’ve facilitated a one-on-one meeting with potential investors, he said.
He noted that they have also proposed to the economic coordinating ministry to include the smelter projects into the list of national strategic projects that will make it easier for the companies to get licenses.
Ridwan pointed out that currently, Indonesia has a total of 19 smelters, including 13 nickel smelters, which have been already in operation. The ministry expects four new smelter projects will start operating this year. They are owned by PT Aneka Tambang Tbk (nickel smelter), PT Smelter Nikel Indonesia (nickel), PT Cahaya Modern Metal Industri (nickel), and PT Kapuas Prima Citra (zinc smelter). "A total of 53 smelters will be in operation by 2024, and 30 of them are nickel smelters with a total investment of US$8 billion," he said. (*)
