Giant EV Battery Raw Material Smelter Begins Operations in Southeast Sulawesi
PT Vale Indonesia Tbk has scheduled the operational startup of its giant High Pressure Acid Leaching (HPAL) project in Pomalaa, Kolaka Regency, Southeast Sulawesi, for August 2026.
The project is targeted to become the backbone for the development of the national electric vehicle battery ecosystem.
Chief Sustainability & Corporate Affairs Officer of PT Vale, Budiawansyah, outlined the readiness of the project located within the Indonesia Pomalaa Industrial Park (IPIP) area.
He affirmed that the operational plan for the HPAL smelter is one of the company’s efforts to support the downstreaming programme initiated by the government.
“If there are no obstacles, this August it is ready for startup. This is the precursor to an integrated battery ecosystem, one of the battery ecosystems in Indonesia,” he said at the HIPMI Grand Seminar in Jakarta on Thursday (6/8/2026).
The project in Pomalaa has a production capacity of 120 kilotons, nearly double Vale’s current operational capacity. The intermediate product produced is Mixed Hydroxide Precipitate (MHP), the primary raw material for the future electric battery industry.
“So in the IPIP industrial area, the Indonesia Pomalaa Industrial Park, the industrial presence is due to the anchor plan, which is a collaboration between Vale, Huayou as the technological provider, and also Ford Motor,” he said.
Budiawansyah explained that this strategic collaboration with Ford and Huayou is designed as an anchor industry that will attract further investment in the downstream sector. The area is prepared to accommodate investors who will process the intermediate product into precursors and cathodes.
“So here it has indeed been designed as the anchor industry and also up to precursors and cathodes, where many investors will come later,” he added.
Through this HPAL project, the company is committed to strengthening Indonesia’s nickel industry so that it does not stop at upstream processing alone. The company is focused on ensuring the entire supply chain, from mining to battery materials, operates responsibly and sustainably.
For context, HPAL is a smelter that produces raw materials for electric vehicle batteries. The HPAL projects undertaken by Vale Indonesia are located in three provinces: Pomalaa in Southeast Sulawesi, Morowali in Central Sulawesi, and Sorowako in South Sulawesi.
The HPAL smelter project in Pomalaa specifically has an investment value of up to US$4.5 billion, or approximately Rp 80.6 trillion (assuming an exchange rate of Rp 17,911 per US dollar). This smelter will produce 120,000 tonnes of Mixed Hydroxide Precipitate (MHP) per year.
The project also involves the American automotive company Ford Motor Co. and the Chinese company Zhejiang Huayou Cobalt.