JakartaPost-Nov 16
Business initiatives conducted throughout the year under the Group of 20 framework have culminated in a series of investment agreements presented at the Business 20 (B20) Summit on Monday. In his closing remarks at the B20 Summit, President Joko Widodo assured forum participants that Indonesia was on track to carry out its “grand strategy” of downstream industry development and green energy investment. The B20 Summit this year gathered more than 2,000 attendees from 65 countries, with more than 1,500 firms represented at the forum. Indonesia, for its part, has been working to refocus the country’s economy toward the production of value-added goods and clean power. In his statement, President Jokowi noted to Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese, who was also attending the closing session, that both countries possessed huge deposits of natural resources needed for electric vehicle (EV) batteries. Jokowi explained that Indonesia had large reserves of nickel, while Australia had significant lithium deposits, putting the two countries in a strong position for EV cooperation. According to data from the United States Geological Survey (USGS), Brazil and Russia rank third and fourth for nickel reserves with 16 million and 7.5 million tons, respectively, behind Indonesia and Australia, which each hold 21 million tons. USGS data shows that Chile has the largest reserves of lithium with 9.2 million tons, followed by Australia with 5.7 million tons and Argentina with 2.2 million tons. Indonesia is not among the top holders of lithium reserves. “Together [with Australia], we could implement downstreaming in Indonesia,” Jokowi continued. The President also asked global business leaders to invest in Indonesian green energy, claiming there were 434 gigawatts in potential energy from sources including hydro, geothermal, solar and wind power. Read more at: https://www.thejakartapost.com/paper/2022/11/16/b20-wraps-up-with-deals-on-green-energy-electric-vehicles-and-more.html
