Critical Minerals and Energy Intelligence

A New HPAL Plant for Indonesia

Indonesia’s strategy for growing the investment in nickel production seems to be right on schedule. Vale Indonesia has signed a new deal with China’s Zhejiang Huayou Cobalt to build a second high-pressure acid leach (HPAL) facility in South Sulawesi. The planned $1.8 billion project will churn out around 60,000 tonnes of mixed hydroxide precipitate (MHP) annually. The new plant will be located in Sorowako, and follows a similar agreement signed earlier this year between Vale and Huayou for another HPAL plant in Pomalaa, Southeast Sulawesi. That project is already attracting heavyweight partners, including Ford.

Just like with Pomalaa, Huayou will lead construction in Sorowako, while Vale retains the option to buy into the project later. Construction for both plants is estimated to take about three years each, according to Vale CEO Febriany Eddy, who emphasized how strategic these projects are for the company.

For those of you who may be new to the battery metals sector, Indonesia has been positioning itself as a hub for battery supply chains, using its massive nickel reserves as a key bargaining chip. The country banned the export of raw nickel ore to push companies toward local refining and manufacturing, which generated a huge wave of investment from major players—especially from China and South Korea. Canada and the U.S. take note.

Anthony Milewski

Chairman, Nickel 28 Capital

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