ASIATODAY.ID, JAKARTA – The President of the Republic of Indonesia, Joko Widodo (Jokowi) and the President of the United States, Joe Biden have reached an agreement to form a working group regarding trade in nickel products from Indonesia to the United States.
The Indonesian Minister of Energy and Mineral Resources, Arifin Tasrif, said that initially there was resistance from members of the United States Senate towards Indonesian mineral products, especially nickel.
“Yesterday President Jokowi and President Biden talked about creating a critical mineral program. So later there will be a working group to design it so it can run,” said Arifin at his office in Jakarta, Friday, November 17 2023.
During his visit, Jokowi to the United States, Indonesia and the United States discussed the potential for a critical minerals agreement to encourage nickel trade for the production of electric vehicle batteries. As a first step, the second party only discussed nickel.
“The initial stage is nickel first, because the most critical thing is nickel,” added Arifin.
For your information, Washington has passed the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) which is an obstacle for Indonesia to become a world player in the electric vehicle battery sector.
For electric vehicles to get half the tax credit, some of the essential minerals in their batteries must be processed in the United States or a group of countries with a free trade agreement (FTA).
Meanwhile, Indonesia does not have an FTA with the United States. That prompted the government to reach a critical minerals deal with Washington, so that its processed nickel products could be protected by the IRA.
“Later, our nickel products will be able to enter there, previously we had to have a free trade agreement. Because this is a nickel mineral that is really needed to help with the energy transition,” concluded Arifin. (AT Network)
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