Maritime Affairs Coordinating Minister Luhut Binsar Pandjaitan has met with Korean Ambassador to Indonesia Cho Tai-young on Thursday to discuss the countries’ joint development of a lithium-ion battery for electric cars. Not wanting to miss out on the next transport technology revolution, Southeast Asian policymakers are racing to accelerate the adoption of electric vehicles as a step to becoming a regional manufacturing hub. Governments and car manufacturers alike have taken steps to electrify fleets and further phase out the combustion engine. In turn, a number of traders now believe lithium to be a high-return investment as demand soars.