JAKARTA. PT Merdeka Copper Gold Tbk (MDKA) is preparing its subsidiary, PT Merdeka Battery Minerals (MBM), to go public through an initial public offering (IPO) earlier this year.

Devin Wirawan, Director of Investment of PT Saratoga Investama Sedaya Tbk (SRTG), the controlling shareholder of MDKA, confirmed that MBM is set for IPO in Q1 2023, despite not being able to reveal any more details regarding the proceeds and issued shares in IPO. “I cannot discuss it any further yet,” he admitted in an interview last Thursday (26/1).

Edwin Soeryadjaya, said that MDKA is currently considering several options of funding, including IPO, and will soon reveal the progress of MBM’s IPO plan. The management also expressed their wish for this IPO to be able to grant opportunities for investors to entering MBM. For the record, MBM is a subsidiary of MDKA that is engaged in the nickel mining sector for raw materials of batteries. It is indirectly controlled by MDKA through PT Merdeka Energi Nusantara with 59.88% ownership.

Based on Soeryadjaya’s statement, MBM has globally significant amount of nickel reserves and is currently operating the Mineral Cahaya Sulawesi mine that holds approximately 13.8 million tons of nickel and 1 million tons of cobalt. It is also operating Rotary Kiln Electric Furnace (RKEF) smelting facility with a total capacity of 88,000 tons of nickel in NPI per year. (AM/ZH)