Jakarta –
President Joko Widodo is sure Tesla Inc. will soon finalize an investment agreement in Indonesia after offering incentives to US automakers. Starting from tax breaks to nickel mining concessions.
Quoted from Reuters, the Indonesian government has indeed been persuading Tesla to invest in the battery and car manufacturing sector since 2020. This is because Indonesia wants to take advantage of large reserves of nickel ore that can be processed for the production of electric vehicle batteries.
Jokowi said the government had discussed this plan with Elon Musk twice. First at a SpaceX facility in Texas last year and by phone call.
“I told him (Elon Musk), if you invest in Indonesia, I will give you a nickel concession,” Jokowi told Reuters, quoted on Wednesday (1/2/2023).
Currently, the government has various ways to boost electric vehicles. Starting from incentives such as tax breaks and subsidies for buying electric vehicles.
He believes Indonesia is a superior country compared to other countries. This could be a consideration for Tesla to invest in the domestic country.
Jokowi also freed Tesla in choosing the offer given by the government. He emphasized that Indonesia is open to investment in the supply chain of electric vehicles and electric cars.
“If they want to start from an EV battery, that’s fine,” he explained.
Tesla has not yet commented on this statement. Indeed, Tesla is now looking for additional manufacturing centers. Now EV production is in Fremon, California, Shanghai, Austin, Texas and outside Berlin.
Analysts predict Tesla will need to build about seven or eight large-scale factories to meet Musk’s target of selling 20 million electric vehicles by 2030.
Apart from Indonesia, South Korea, Canada and Mexico are also targeting Tesla to be able to invest in their countries. A spokesman for the President of Mexico said that Tesla was looking into building an assembly plant near Mexico City’s new airport.
Analysts also say Mexico has an advantage in getting investment from Tesla because it is close to the main market in the United States.
If Tesla does invest in battery production in Indonesia, this will be the first in Asia. Last month, Tesla announced a $3.6 billion investment to expand battery production in Nevada.
President Jokowi banned exports of nickel ore in 2020 to encourage the development of an integrated battery and electric vehicle supply chain.
This ban succeeded in bringing in large investments from China. But in the World Trade Organization (WTO) the European Union strongly opposes this ban. They assess the ban could be detrimental to their industry.
(kilo/that)
