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[[U.S. President Joe Biden will not be attending the 28th United Nations Climate Change Conference, or COP 28. But U.S. diplomats will be there, interested in getting access to the critical mineral exports necessary to transition to green energy. And Indonesia is positioning itself to be a new partner of choice.
VOA’s Jessica Stone reports.
Content TypePackage
LanguageEnglish
Transcript/Script INDONESIA CRITICAL MINERALS
HEADLINE: Indonesia Exploits US-China Divide on Critical Minerals
TEASER: How Jakarta is planning to grow its critical minerals exports
PUBLISHED: 11/28/23 at 530p
BYLINE: Jessica Stone
CONTRIBUTOR:
DATELINE: Washington
VIDEOGRAPHER: Jessica Stone
PRODUCER:
SCRIPT EDITORS: KEnochs; Sharon Shahid
VIDEO SOURCE (S): Stone Zoom Interview, AFP, AP, Reuters
PLATFORMS (mark with X): WEB __ TV _x_ RADIO __
TRT: 2:39
VID APPROVED BY: Jepsen
TYPE:
EDITOR NOTES:))
((INTRO))
[[U.S. President Joe Biden will not be attending the 28th United Nations Climate Change Conference, or COP 28. But U.S. diplomats will be there, interested in getting access to the critical mineral exports necessary to transition to green energy. And Indonesia is positioning itself to be a new partner of choice. VOA’s Jessica Stone reports.]]
((NARRATOR))
When you drive a Tesla — the world’s largest producer of electric vehicles — you’re riding on a battery powered by critical minerals …
((NARRATOR))
((nat sound mining))
Lithium from Chile. Cobalt from the Democratic Republic of Congo. And nickel from Indonesia.
Currently, China dominates the market for the extraction and refining of these critical green energy battery components. But in November, Indonesian President Joko Widodo told business leaders that Jakarta wants to become an alternative partner of choice.
((Joko Widodo; Indonesian President)) ((in Indonnesian)) ((Mandatory Courtesy: APEC CEO Summit))
"As home to the largest nickel reserves in the world and other critical minerals, Indonesia is in the process of building an EV integrated ecosystem and aims to produce 600 thousand electric cars by 2030.”
((NARRATOR))
Bakrie Group CEO Anindya Novyan Bakrie wants to take advantage of that pledge. He’s pivoting his family’s traditional Indonesian energy mining company into a
renewable mining company that can also exploit the growing demand for a non-Chinese critical mineral supply chain.
((Anindya Novyan Bakrie; Bakrie Group CEO))
“We want to focus not only to the East, but to the West. There is not only market but also enthusiasm, capital and technology. So, that's a good thing.”
((NARRATOR))
Indonesian mines are already partnering with Chinese refineries to process their minerals. Bakrie says Jakarta needs support from Washington to compete.
((Anindya Novyan Bakrie; Bakrie Group CEO))
“We're very optimistic, but I want to also highlight we don't have all the solutions, really, because we need serious capital. We need serious technology. // (cut to) The only one we see that can, you know, also catch up or even surpass would be the country that has IRA inflation reduction act.”
((NARRATOR))
In November, Widodo met with U.S. President Joe Biden to negotiate a critical minerals trade agreement that makes Indonesia eligible for U.S. subsidies under the Inflation Reduction Act.
But Southeast Asia expert Greg Poling says there’s a long road ahead to approval.
((Greg Poling; CSIS Southeast Asia Program Director)) ((Zoom))
“Members of both parties on the Hill have been clear that any future agreement with Indonesia or other major mineral supplier has to involve a lot of progress on labor and environmental standards and may have to involve some kind of separation of the supply chain and make sure that Chinese companies working in those countries can't find back doors to sell and qualify for IRA subsidies.”
((NARRATOR))
In the meantime, Jakarta is making progress on reducing Beijing’s dominance in refining critical minerals. In 2020, it banned the export of nickel ore, and Indonesian law requires companies which mine to also refine — domestically.
((Jessica Stone, VOA News, Washington.))
NewsML Media TopicsArts, Culture, Entertainment and Media
NetworkVOA
Location (dateline)
in Washington D. C.
Embargo DateNovember 29, 2023 19:15 EST
Byline
Jessica Stone, VOA News
Brand / Language ServiceVoice of America - English
