MoUs signed on development and critical minerals. The island nation is a major nickel and tin producer.
On Wednesday, the United Kingdom and Indonesia signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to collaborate on critical minerals. According to Reuters, the MoU focuses on policy dialogue and the sharing of knowledge, technologies, and expertise to cover supply chain resilience as well as sustainable mining and processing. The agreement was signed by the British Development Minister Anneliese Dodds and Indonesian Energy and Mineral Resources Minister Bahlil Lahadalia in Jakarta. It follows the signing of another MoU on sustainable development and the empowerment of women and girls yesterday. Dodds is on a three-day visit to the island nation and is scheduled to attend several bilateral meetings.
The Largest Economy in Southeast Asia Has a Major Mining Industry
Indonesia is an emerging market economy and the largest in Southeast Asia. It is powered largely by coal but has enormous potential for renewable energies such as wind and solar power. The cooperation with the UK is also intended to ramp up efforts in the renewables sector, according to the embassy in Jakarta. Indonesia plans to develop its critical minerals downstream processing sector further to capitalize more on. With a series of export bans on unprocessed raw materials, the country seeks to lure investment into the country.
Indonesia’s critical minerals are vital for clean energy transitions worldwide, not just within the island nation. It is the world’s leading nickel producer, a metal used as cathode or anode material in batteries. In addition, Indonesia is the world’s second-largest tin miner, a metal mainly used to solder electrical components but also coat glasses of solar panels, for example. As a major coal producer, Indonesia also holds the potential to mine other critical minerals, such as rare earths or germanium, which are contained within certain coal ashes and sludge. The Indonesian Energy and Mineral Resources Ministry announced last year that it had begun to conduct studies to probe the economic viability (we reported).
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