Jakarta. An electric vehicle battery plant developed through a partnership between Indonesian state-owned mining company Aneka Tambang (Antam) and China's Contemporary Amperex Technology Co. Limited (CATL) has begun production and is expected to be formally inaugurated soon, Energy and Mineral Resources Minister Bahlil Lahadalia said Thursday.

The facility in Karawang, West Java, is part of a broader integrated battery development initiative comprising six projects designed to establish a domestic EV battery supply chain, from mineral extraction and processing to battery manufacturing.

The other five projects are located in East Halmahera, North Maluku.

"The factory will be inaugurated soon because it has already started production," Bahlil said after meeting President Prabowo Subianto at the Presidential Palace in Jakarta.

Bahlil said the new facility would strengthen Indonesia's growing EV battery industry, which is being developed as part of the government's strategy to increase the domestic processing of mineral resources and attract investment in higher-value manufacturing.

According to the minister, Indonesia now has three operational battery manufacturing facilities: a plant developed by Hyundai, another facility inaugurated in Halmahera earlier this month with Chinese investment, and the CATL-Antam project in Karawang.

The minister said these developments reflected progress toward establishing an integrated battery industry covering mining, mineral processing and battery cell production.

"Not many countries may have this kind of integrated ecosystem, which is the result of our efforts to pursue industrialization," Bahlil said.

The EV battery ecosystem development initiative involves a reported investment of $5.9 billion, covering projects across the battery supply chain.

Construction of the Karawang facility began in June 2025, when President Prabowo attended a groundbreaking ceremony at the site.

The project is part of Indonesia's broader effort to capitalize on its nickel resources by developing downstream industries that can supply battery materials and finished batteries for the global electric vehicle market.

The government has made battery manufacturing a key component of its industrial development strategy, seeking to move beyond exports of raw minerals and establish Indonesia as a production base for EV components.

Bahlil did not announce a specific inauguration date or disclose the Karawang plant's current production volume.

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