Australian Firm to Invest US$350 Million in Batang Special Economic Zone Factory

Australian company Pure Battery Technologies (PBT) has committed to investing approximately US$350 million in the Batang Industropolis Special Economic Zone (KEK) in Central Java. The investment is for a production facility for precursor cathode active material (PCAM). The project is projected to absorb around 1,000 workers during its construction phase. PBT Chairman Stephen Wilmot stated that the company is currently working on the engineering stage in preparation for physical construction. “We hope to begin construction next year,” he said during an audience with Central Java Governor Ahmad Luthfi in Semarang. Once operational, the factory is expected to require about 200 permanent employees, not including workers in supporting sectors such as logistics, transport, and shipping. Wilmot emphasised that PBT will prioritise local workers and provide education and training to ensure the local community has the skills needed by the battery industry. “We do not want to bring in workers from other countries. We want to train local people so they can work in our factory,” he said. According to Wilmot, the project in Central Java is the largest investment ever made by PBT, with the factory’s scale estimated to be more than four times that of the company’s refining facility in Germany. The plant is projected to generate annual revenue of around US$900 million, though realisation will depend on global nickel price developments. PBT plans to use nickel raw materials from Indonesia to build a comprehensive battery industry value chain. The materials produced can be used for bus and car batteries, as well as energy storage systems for electricity grids. “We want to build the entire electric vehicle value chain, including managing batteries that have reached the end of their life,” Wilmot explained. “We want to do recycling to ensure no environmental issues arise.” He added that while PBT could have built the factory near nickel mines, the company chose Central Java due to its strategic location and large population.