JakartaGlobe-Oct 13
An opportunity arises for cooperation between Indonesia and Australia on the lithium supply chain. Indonesia can process Australian lithium —a critical component for electric vehicle batteries— to be later exported to other markets such as the US, according to former Australian minister for trade, tourism, and investment Steven Ciobo. Ciobo said the hardening positions of the US and China had created opportunities in Indonesia. He added that the Indonesian government was now alert to opportunities around the supply chain. “The world’s biggest market, the US, wants to continue to have a guaranteed supply chain, especially around critical components such as lithium and rare earth oxides,” Ciobo said at the Investor Daily Summit 2022 in Jakarta on Wednesday. This provides an opportunity to take full advantage of the Indonesia-Australia Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (IA-CEPA), which aims to unlock trade and investment potential for both countries. “What better opportunity to capitalize the IA-CEPA than to, for example, build a supply chain of lithium from Australia, from where it’s mined, to be processed here in Indonesia? Then, they could be exported from Indonesia to, for example, the US,” he said. Such cooperation on lithium would align with the Indonesian government’s vision of becoming a global leader in the supply of renewable energy and critical minerals. “And also help to drive the transition to electric vehicles,” Ciobo told the conference.
Indonesia is abundant in nickel, another critical ingredient for batteries, but has to import its lithium. According to state-owned battery maker Indonesia Battery Corporation (IBC), Indonesia needs 70,000 tons of lithium hydroxide every year, but the Southeast Asian country still imports from China, Australia, and Chile. Read more at: https://jakartaglobe.id/business/australia-indonesia-can-team-up-on-lithium-supply-chain
