Bahlil Brings Good News: Electric Vehicle Battery Factory In Karawang Will Prioritize Local Workers

Investment Minister Bahlil Lahadalia (Photo: Doc. Setkab)

JAKARTA - Hyundai Motor Group and LG Energy Solution officially laid the first stone or groundbreaking for the construction of a battery factory for electric vehicles in Karawang, West Java. Investment Minister/Head of the Investment Coordinating Board (BKPM) Bahlil Lahadalia promised that the construction of the factory would be reserved for local workers.

Furthermore, Bahlil said, the absorption of foreign workers will only be given to certain positions or certain skills that cannot be filled by local workers.

"In the MoU to them (investors) that the widest possible employment opportunities are for domestic workers, not for overseas. Foreign workers are allowed as long as they fulfill special specifications and certain positions", Bahlil said in the groundbreaking activity for the electric vehicle battery in Karawang, West Java, Wednesday, September 15.

Bahlil said the investment currently being built is part of a total investment commitment of USD 9.8 billion. The remaining investment will be realized in stages.

In the first phase, the realization of this investment began with the construction of an electric vehicle battery factory worth USD 1.1 billion in Karawang with a capacity of 10 Gigawatt Hours (GWH). This development also involves national entrepreneurs in the regions and MSMEs.

Bahlil said the investment commitment was a strengthening in the downstream industry sector. This effort is a step to provide added value from commodities in Indonesia.

"This is the first integrated downstream investment concept because the batteries are from state-owned enterprises, the mines, which are the majority. The smelter is built in North Maluku. There is a location close to raw materials", he said.

At the end of the year, said Bahlil, the investment realization will continue. The LG-Hyundai consortium in collaboration with the SOE consortium will build a precursor and cathode industry in the Batang Integrated Industrial Estate (KIT), Central Java, with a capacity of 23 gigabytes.

For your information, the previous electric car battery development project was marked by a memorandum of understanding or MoU between the Ministry of investment and the Hyundai and LG consortium in December 2020.

Later, the consortium from South Korea will partner with Indonesia Battery Corporation, which consists of PT Indonesia Asahan Aluminum (Inalum), PT Aneka Tambang Tbk (ANTM), PT Pertamina, PT Perusahaan Listrik Negara, and Contemporary Amperex Technology Co. Ltd.