The announcement was made after a meeting on October 29 between representatives from over 30 nickel mining enterprises and Indonesian officials.
The Indonesia’s Investment Coordinating Board (BKPM) said the meeting aims to propose specific actions to promote investment in the metallurgy industry.
The Indonesian government’s official ban on exports of nickel was set for January 2020, two years earlier than the first plan.
Indonesia ever banned the exports of nickel ore in 2014 and eased the ban in 2017. Its government then said exports of nickel ore would be suspended in 2022.
Indonesia accounts for 25 percent of the nickel reserves worldwide with an estimated value of US$350 billion.
The suspension of nickel exports is also part of the plan to turn Indonesia into an electric car manufacturing centre. Nickel is used in producing lithium batteries for electric vehicles. The Indonesian government is calling on foreign auto manufacturers such as Toyota and Huyndai to invest in electric car production in the country.
