Indonesia has requested the assistance of Chinese automaker Geely in developing a domestic electric car brand by either 2025 or Japan2026, according to a September 14 report by Reuters, citing an Indonesian senior minister on Tuesday. “I asked Geely if they wanted to make cars in Indonesia, be an Indonesian brand, and do their research in Indonesia, and they said yes,” Minister Luhut Pandjaitan, who oversees regulations on natural resources and investment, told a seminar. The proposal involves Indonesia supplying nickel ore for electric vehicle (EV) battery production, but the primary responsibility for research and development must remain in Indonesia, the minister said. Indonesia has been actively seeking investments from EV manufacturers, securing commitments from companies like China’s Hozon and Japan’s Mitsubishi. However, efforts to attract investments from major EV manufacturers such as Tesla from the United States and China’s BYD Group have not yet materialized, according to Reuters. [Reuters]
