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Minister of Investment / Head of Investment Coordinating Board (BKPM) Bahlil Lahadalia. (ANTARA/Ade Irma Junida/KT) - 

Minister of Investment / Head of Investment Coordinating Board (BKPM) Bahlil Lahadalia has pointed out several implemented strategies to attract investment in electric car batteries in Indonesia.

In addition to boosting promotions and offering ease of licensing, BKPM has also been looking for options to acquire an electric car company from Germany.

"State-owned Enterprises (BUMN) will have IBC (Indonesia Battery Corporation), which is a company to handle the car and car battery ecosystem. Also, there is a plan to acquire the shares of a car factory in Germany,” Lahadalia told reporters in Nusa Dua, Bali on Sunday.

If the government cannot build the electric car factories up, then it must acquire them, he said.

Furthermore, he stressed that despite taking the acquisition measure, he ensured the price still has to be economical and the process must be transparent. 

He also explained that promotional endeavors are still carried out, including the publicity of the ease of investment licensing.

According to him, Indonesia holds 22-24 percent of the world's nickel reserves and it has the best quality.

He explained, the distance of Indonesian nickel mines is still considered close to the ports, so the cost of production is cheaper, according to him.

"A car's battery is made of nickel, manganese, cobalt, and lithium. Of those four, we do not have lithium. Nevertheless, that means 85 percent of a car battery's raw materials are (available) in our country. That is why everyone is waiting for us to export them, but we do not want to," he explained.

Lahadalia said, in following the national strategic plan, Indonesia must fully switch to electric vehicles by 2040.

Hence, that goal has begun to be bolstered since 2019 when the Indonesian government successfully appealed to Hyundai from South Korea to invest in Indonesia.

Not only South Korea, but the government is also targeting electric battery manufacturers and the world’s electric vehicle industry to invest in Indonesia. Investment commitments have come from CATL from China and Foxconn from Taiwan, he informed//ANT