Posted on 29 Aug 2025
Sovereign wealth fund Danantara Indonesia intends to join Shenzhen-based battery and materials recycler GEM to co-invest in a 66,000-tonne/year nickel project in Indonesia, Kallanish learns.
The High-Pressure Acid Leaching (HPAL) smelter facility is expected to demand $1.42 billion in investment to produce nickel as mixed hydroxide precipitate (MHP), an intermediary production for nickel and cobalt sulphate. These, in turn, are battery-grade raw materials.
The companies have now inked a heads of agreement establishing a framework for potential co-investment. If the deal is finalised, Danatara will also join PT Vale Indonesia, already part of the project. Danatara did not provide a timeline for the potential transaction closure, nor an update on the project’s development.
GEM has invested $30 million to establish a metallurgical research laboratory with the Bandung Institute of Technology (ITB), to enhance Indonesia’s research and development. It has also invested in a high-tech nickel industrial park and established a joint innovation laboratory with Indonesian and Chinese top universities.
The project’s long-term vision goes beyond nickel processing, encompassing cathode materials, battery cells, high-quality nickel plates, and heavy equipment manufacturing. The project will be run on green energy and feature a closed-loop recycling system.
“The partnership with GEM represents another milestone in Danantara Indonesia’s mission to catalyse strategic investments that accelerate Indonesia’s socioeconomic transformation,” says Rosan Roeslani, ceo of Danantara Indonesia.
Danantara was launched in February to fund sustainable projects in the new energy sector.
Indonesia is the world’s largest nickel producer.
Source:Kallanish
