PT Vale Indonesia Tbk and China’s Zhejiang Huayou Cobalt Co. have announced an agreement with Ford Motor Co. in Dearborn for a three-party collaboration to advance more sustainable nickel production in Indonesia and help make electric vehicle batteries more affordable.
The collaboration will deliver materials essential for the auto industry’s shift to EVs, enhance Indonesia’s EV manufacturing industry, and support Ford’s plan to deliver a 2 million EV production run rate by the end of 2026 and further scale over time.
All three companies are making equity investments in the Pomalaa Block High-Pressure Acid Leaching (HPAL) Project through a definitive agreement.
The Pomalaa Block HPAL Project will process ore provided by PT Vale Indonesia from its Pomalaa Block mine to produce MHP. This HPAL plant will operate under PT Kolaka Nickel Indonesia in the Pomalaa Block nickel industrial area in Kolaka, Southwest Sulawesi, Indonesia.
Subject to regulatory approval, the project could produce up to 120 kilotons per year of contained nickel in the form of mixed hydroxide precipitate (MHP), a lower-cost nickel product used in EV batteries with nickel-rich cathodes.
Early site preparations for the project have already started, and full construction is expected to start this year, with commercial operations beginning in 2026.
The three-way nickel processing project — together with a separate supply agreement under development with Ford and Huayou for a precursor cathode active material critical to manufacturing lithium-ion batteries — collectively will combine with Ford’s other sourced nickel, significantly contributing to support its EV production targets by the end of 2026.
“This framework gives Ford direct control to source the nickel we need, in one of the industry’s lowest-cost ways, and allows us to ensure the nickel is mined in line with our company’s sustainability targets, setting the right ESG standards as we scale,” says Lisa Drake, vice president for Ford Model e EV industrialization.
Working this way puts Ford in a position to help make EVs more accessible for millions and to do it in a way that helps better protect people and the planet.
The agreement is the continuation of PT Vale Indonesia’s Pomalaa Block ground-breaking last November. The National Strategic Project will include an investment of up to Indonesian rupiah 67.5 trillion and is expected to generate 12,000 construction jobs.
“Huayou is a technology-driven enterprise, and a leading manufacturer of green, low carbon, high ESG standard new energy battery materials,” says George Fang, senior vice president of Huayou.
This strategic cooperation is one of the flagship projects under the Belt and Road Initiative and Global Maritime Fulcrum synergy, also links Indonesia nickel and cobalt resources to EV makers via Huayou’s HPAL technology. The project should create a great business model of EV value chain and will make a contribution to the EV industry ecology development of Indonesia.
The MHP produced in this project will be processed further into nickel sulphate, cobalt sulphate Li-ion battery materials, and ternary PCAM. The joint efforts of three parties aims to create a very positive influence on the economy and social development of Indonesia as well as the global EV industry and its supply chain.
The project was inaugurated by the Coordinating Minister of Maritime Affairs and Investment, Luhut Binsar Pandjaitan. During his speech, Minister Luhut says Pomalaa Block is the stepping stone for Indonesia to be recognized as a high-quality mineral producer for the global EV ecosystem.
“This partnership affirms PT Vale Indonesia as the premiere supplier and champion of sustainable and low-carbon nickel, building on our 55-year history as a key partner with a commitment to drive lasting socioeconomic benefits for Indonesia on its path to becoming a critical hub for the global EV value chain,” says Deshnee Naidoo, PT Vale President Commissioner and Executive Vice-President of Vale Energy Transition Metals.
Morgan Stanley & Co. is serving as Ford’s financial advisor in connection with this transaction, while Standard Chartered is providing similar services for Huayou.
