Volkswagen to partner on Indonesia EV battery ecosystem
Volkswagen will build an electric vehicle (EV) battery ecosystem in Indonesia and partner with miner Vale, Ford and China's battery minerals producer Zhejiang Huayou Cobalt, Indonesian investment minister Bahlil Lahadalia has said.
Hanoi (VNA) - Volkswagen will build anelectric vehicle (EV) battery ecosystem in Indonesia and partner with minerVale, Ford and China's battery minerals producer Zhejiang Huayou Cobalt, Indonesianinvestment minister Bahlil Lahadalia has said.
Automakers are courting Indonesia for its rawmaterials used in producing EV batteries, which account for about 40% of a vehicle'ssticker price, aiming to cut costs and close the gap on EV market leader Tesla.
Minister Lahadalia said on April 16 that Volkswagen,Europe's biggest automaker, will work with Vale, Ford, Huayou, French minerEramet and several Indonesian firms such as Merdeka Gold Copper, the parentcompany of Merdeka Battery, and energy firm Kalla Group, adding that the partnershipswill consist of joint ventures and supply raw materials.
Separately, a statement issued by President Joko Widodo's officesaid Volkswagen's investment will be carried out by its battery unit PowerCo.
Meanwhile, Bahlil said Germany's chemicals group BASF had also expressed aninterest in building a plant to produce battery materials, partnering withEramet, in Indonesia's north Maluku province, for a total investment of about2.6 billion USD.
Last month, Ford inked its first investment inIndonesia by joining Vale Indonesia and Huayou in a 4.5 billion USD nickelprocessing plant in Southeast Sulawesi.
Volkswagen last month said it plans to invest 180billion EUR (193 billion USD) over five years in areas including batteryproduction and raw material sourcing./.
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Illustrative image (Source: Reuters) 
