Jakarta. Energy and Mineral Resources Minister Bahlil Lahadalia confirmed on Thursday that it was his decision to remove South Korea’s LG Energy Solution from a high-profile consortium developing an integrated electric vehicle (EV) battery industry in the country.

Contrary to earlier reports suggesting that LG had withdrawn voluntarily, Bahlil stressed that the government had asked LG to step aside due to persistent delays in its investment commitments.

“The narrative that LG pulled out of the consortium is inaccurate. The truth is, I -- as head of the [Energy Independence] Task Force -- made the decision to cancel LG’s participation due to prolonged delays,” Bahlil said after a meeting with President Prabowo Subianto at the State Palace in Jakarta.

He declined to elaborate further but said the decision was made in consultation with Investment Minister Rosan Roeslani and State-Owned Enterprises Minister Erick Thohir.

China’s Huayou Eyed as Replacement
Following LG’s removal, the government is now in talks with China’s Huayou, a leading nickel processor, to join the consortium. Huayou, through its Indonesian arm Huayou Indonesia, is already active in major nickel projects, including operations in Weda Bay, Halmahera, North Maluku.

The consortium -- which includes Indonesia Battery Corporation (IBC) and state-owned mining company Aneka Tambang (Antam) -- has committed to a total investment of $9.8 billion, allocated across the EV battery supply chain: $850 million for upstream mining, $4 billion for smelter development, $1.8 billion for a cathode processing facility, and $3.2 billion for a battery cell factory.

The project is a core part of the Indonesian government’s ambition to position the country as a global hub in the EV supply chain, leveraging its vast nickel reserves to attract strategic investments.