JAKARTA. PT Vale Indonesia Tbk (INCO) has signed a definitive cooperation agreement with Zhejiang Huayou Cobalt Co. Ltd. (Huayou) and PT Huali Nickel Indonesia (Huali) for the construction of nickel smelting facility in East Luwu, South Sulawesi.

This smelting facility will adopt the High-Pressure Acid Leaching (HPAL) technology and is projected to have a production capacity of 60 thousand tons of nickel and 5 thousand tons of cobalt per annum in the form of Mixed Hydroxide Precipitate (MHP).

Febriany Eddy, CEO of INCO, said that this collaboration is in line with Indonesia’s vision to establish its domestic electronic vehicle (EV) ecosystem. “It also puts Vale Indonesia as the main contributor in solving global decarbonisation challenge,” he said in the official statement.

Meanwhile, Desnee Naidoo, President Commissioner of INCO, said that the partnership with Huayou and Huali is a strategic achievement attained by INCO. “It is a part of our investment program worth USD 8.6 million in Indonesia,” Naidoo added.

For the record, this HPAL smelter project will begin its construction only after obtaining necessary licenses. (KR/ZH)