Indonesia Nickel Industry for National Geographic

This series is part of National Geographic global coverage on electric vehicle industry. Read the whole story here.

The emergence of global electric vehicle industry is driving the nickel boom in the Indonesia, the world’s biggest nickel producer. Along with lithium and cobalt, nickel is one of the primary components of electric vehicle batteries. Although most of of the world’s nickel is still mainly used to make stainless steel, it is increasingly being used in electric vehicle battery productions. However, like in many other place, nickel extraction in Indonesia is a dirty business and it involves energy-intensive processes. Also, most of the mining operations do not appear to have visible impacts on people’s welfare and yet the exploitation operates with impunity over environmental and social violations.

The environmental and social impacts of the nickel extraction are very visible in some areas in Indonesia where this resource is abundant, like on the island of Sulawesi and Halmahera. The process of getting the nickel ore destroys the forest, the lack of proper tailing management by the mining companies has led to major environmental destructions, and for the people, the presence of the mines changed their way of living, but mostly not for the better. If nickel is so valuable for a more sustainable future, who is paying the real price?