Prabowo Approves Transfer of EV Battery Project from LG to China's Huayou
The electric vehicle battery downstream project previously managed by the LG consortium has now been transferred to Chinese company Huayou. This was announced by Minister of Energy and Mineral Resources (ESDM) Bahlil Lahadalia following a limited cabinet meeting chaired by President Prabowo at the Presidential Palace in Jakarta on Thursday, 22 May 2025.
Bahlil stated that the project is now ready for groundbreaking. "It has been decided and approved by the President. On the President's direction, the project is now being carried out by the Huayou consortium. There are no further issues," said Bahlil.
He emphasised that reports suggesting LG voluntarily withdrew from the project were incorrect. According to him, the decision to replace LG with Huayou was taken due to delays in LG's delivery. "As the then head of the task force, I decided to cancel the cooperation with LG because it was taking too long. Together with Pak Rosan and Pak Erick, we agreed to bring in Huayou as a replacement. This information needs to be set straight," Bahlil stressed.
The project's ownership structure continues to place Indonesian state-owned enterprises as majority shareholders in the upstream sector. The government considers this step essential to maintaining national control over strategic resources.
During the same meeting, progress on other cooperative projects with Chinese battery giant CATL was also discussed. Minister of Investment and Downstreaming, who also serves as head of BKPM and BPI Danantara, Rosan Roeslani, emphasised the importance of Danantara's role in supporting project financing. "Previously there may have been funding constraints. But since Danantara was established, we have been able to assist because this project is very promising — both in terms of returns, job creation, and economic impact," said Rosan.
Rosan further stated that collaboration with Huayou and CATL would create an integrated ecosystem from mining through to battery production under a single green package concept. "With the involvement of these two major consortiums, a complete ecosystem from mining to batteries will be realised — both through the Huayou and CATL partnerships," he added.
The limited cabinet meeting held at the Merdeka Palace in Jakarta was chaired directly by President Prabowo Subianto. The meeting addressed the continuation of the electric vehicle battery downstream project, specifically regarding the investment transition from the LG consortium to Huayou and developments in similar projects with CATL.
The meeting was attended by several senior officials, including Coordinating Minister for Economic Affairs Airlangga Hartarto, State Secretary Prasetyo Hadi, Minister of State-Owned Enterprises Erick Thohir, Cabinet Secretary Teddy Indra Wijaya, Deputy Minister of Industry Faisol Riza, and Danantara COO Dony Oskaria.
Bahlil stated that the project is now ready for groundbreaking. "It has been decided and approved by the President. On the President's direction, the project is now being carried out by the Huayou consortium. There are no further issues," said Bahlil.
He emphasised that reports suggesting LG voluntarily withdrew from the project were incorrect. According to him, the decision to replace LG with Huayou was taken due to delays in LG's delivery. "As the then head of the task force, I decided to cancel the cooperation with LG because it was taking too long. Together with Pak Rosan and Pak Erick, we agreed to bring in Huayou as a replacement. This information needs to be set straight," Bahlil stressed.
The project's ownership structure continues to place Indonesian state-owned enterprises as majority shareholders in the upstream sector. The government considers this step essential to maintaining national control over strategic resources.
During the same meeting, progress on other cooperative projects with Chinese battery giant CATL was also discussed. Minister of Investment and Downstreaming, who also serves as head of BKPM and BPI Danantara, Rosan Roeslani, emphasised the importance of Danantara's role in supporting project financing. "Previously there may have been funding constraints. But since Danantara was established, we have been able to assist because this project is very promising — both in terms of returns, job creation, and economic impact," said Rosan.
Rosan further stated that collaboration with Huayou and CATL would create an integrated ecosystem from mining through to battery production under a single green package concept. "With the involvement of these two major consortiums, a complete ecosystem from mining to batteries will be realised — both through the Huayou and CATL partnerships," he added.
The limited cabinet meeting held at the Merdeka Palace in Jakarta was chaired directly by President Prabowo Subianto. The meeting addressed the continuation of the electric vehicle battery downstream project, specifically regarding the investment transition from the LG consortium to Huayou and developments in similar projects with CATL.
The meeting was attended by several senior officials, including Coordinating Minister for Economic Affairs Airlangga Hartarto, State Secretary Prasetyo Hadi, Minister of State-Owned Enterprises Erick Thohir, Cabinet Secretary Teddy Indra Wijaya, Deputy Minister of Industry Faisol Riza, and Danantara COO Dony Oskaria.