Indonesia Nickel Smelter Projects Slow Amid Pandemic, an Industrial Info Market Brief

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Construction of several grassroots nickel smelter projects across Indonesia have been put on hold amid weakening demand due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Industrial Info is tracking 328 nickel and nickel smelter projects in Southeast Asia worth more than $34 billion.

Most of the Chinese-backed smelter projects have been disrupted by lockdown measures, equipment logistic delays, and contractors with manpower shortages. Indonesia has 181 nickel projects worth more than $26 billion--the highest spending of any country in Southeast Asia. The bulk of the spending is attributed to foreign direct investments for nickel smelters and processing plants.

Click here for a list of nickel smelter projects in Southeast Asia, and see graph below for a breakdown by country.