The National Integrated Battery Project Is Claimed To Save 300,000 KL Of Fuel Imports Per Year

KARAWANG - Minister of Energy and Mineral Resources (ESDM) said that the electric vehicle battery ecosystem development project undertaken by PT Aneka Tambang Tbk (ANTM), CATL, and Indonesia Battery Corporation (IBC) has the potential to reduce imports of fuel oil (BBM) to 300,000 kiloliters (KL) per year.

This was conveyed by the Minister of Investment/Head of BKPM Bahlil Lahadalia when reporting the progress of the project to President Prabowo Subianto in the Artha Industrial Hills area, Karawang, West Java, Sunday, July 29.

"This can save fuel imports of around 300,000 kiloliters per year with a capacity of 15 GWh. Our target in the future can be up to 40 GWh, along with the increase in the battery market, including for PLTS," said Bahlil.

The cell battery factory in Karawang is targeted to have an initial capacity of 6.9 GWh in the first phase, which will start operating by the end of 2026. Furthermore, the project will be expanded to reach a total capacity of 15 GWh in the second phase.

Battery production from this factory will later be used to support electric vehicles and energy storage systems, both for the domestic and global market needs.

The project, formerly known as the Dragon Project, has an investment value of 1.2 billion US dollars for Karawang, while in North Maluku it reached 4.7 billion US dollars.

"The mines, smelters, precursors, cathodes, RKF are all in North Maluku. In Karawang it is only for battery cells, so that it is close to the automotive factory," explained Bahlil.

In addition to the efficiency of importing fossil energy, this project also carries the principle of sustainability in energy supply. The combination of the generators used includes PLTU 2 x 150 MW, PLTG 80 MW, power plants from hot waste (waste heat) 30 MW, and PLTS 172 MWp for the North Maluku region.

As for Karawang, the battery factory will use PLTS of 24 MWp. "So, we really encourage this to be environmentally friendly," said Bahlil.