Indonesia Battery Corp, CATL unit sign JV deal, state media says
JAKARTA (Reuters) - Indonesia Battery Corporation (IBC) and a unit of China's battery giant Contemporary Amperex Technology Co (CATL) have formed a joint venture (JV) firm to build a battery cell manufacturing plant, Indonesian state media Antara reported on Thursday.
State firm IBC and the CATL unit, CBL International Development, first announced their cooperation plan in 2022 and the new JV is expected to invest up to $1.18 billion on a plant with planned capacity of 15 gigawatt hours, Antara reported, citing IBC chief executive Toto Nugroho.
"This capacity will be enough to meet domestic and global demand," Toto was quoted as saying. The plant is expected to start production in 2027.
Indonesia is keen to develop a domestic battery and electric vehicles industry, utilising its vast nickel reserves.
(Reporting by Fransiska Nangoy; Editing by Mark Potter)