Chinese firm to invest in Indonesian nickel matte project with 40,000 tons annual capacity

A visitor looks at an exhibit at the 2021 World New Energy Vehicle Congress in Haikou, capital of south China's Hainan Province, Sept. 15, 2021.  (Xinhua/Zhou Jiayi)

BEIJING, Jan. 7 (Xinhua) -- Chinese firm Zhejiang Weiming Environment Protection Co., Ltd. (Zhejiang Weiming) announced on Wednesday that it would invest in a nickel matte project with annual output capacity of 40,000 tons in Indonesia, reported China Securities Journal on Thursday.

Located in Indonesia's Weda Bay industrial park, the project expects a total investment of up to 390 million U.S. dollars, of which Weiming would invest no more than 273 million U.S. dollars, according to the announcement.

The cooperation agreement on the project was signed on November 24, 2021 between Weiming Group, the controlling shareholder of Zhejiang Weiming, and Indigo International Investment Ltd.

Nickel battery should better meet consumer's needs in new energy vehicles (NEVs) in terms of driving distance per charge, level of energy-consuming, costs, etc, according to an industry insider. In the next five years, nickel battery could become the major choice for middle and high-end NEV market, leading to surging demand for nickel. 

The new energy sector is expected to be the company's another major business area following solid waste treatment and environment protection equipment, an official with Zhejiang Weiming was quoted by the newspaper as saying.