By WANG Xiaxia

A China-invested project under the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) in Indonesia has accelerated the transformation of the country's nickel industry, helping it evolve from a raw material exporter to the world's leading producer of nickel iron and stainless steel.

Delong Industrial Park, developed by Jiangsu Delong Nickel Co., Ltd., is located in Kendari, Sulawesi province, Indonesia. Covering 2,200 hectares, the park has an annual production capacity of 3 million tons of ferronickel and 2.5 million tons of stainless steel.

As a key China-Indonesia cooperation project under the BRI framework, the industrial park was launched in 2014 and includes two facilities in Kendari and one in Morowali—designated as national strategic projects by Indonesia.

Indonesia holds the world’s largest nickel reserves. By building smelters and processing plants, the country has significantly increased the value of its nickel resources beyond mere ore exports, integrating deeply into the global stainless steel and new energy vehicle battery产业链.

In December 2021, Indonesian President Joko Widodo praised the Morowali ferronickel smelter at its inauguration, noting such projects boost tax revenue, create jobs, and stimulate local economic growth.

In 2021 alone, the Kendari plant contributed over 3 billion RMB in tax revenue to Indonesia and created approximately 30,000 local jobs, with 80% of the workforce hired locally.

To enhance workforce skills and cultivate specialized talent for the nickel sector, Delong established a training institute approved by Indonesian education authorities, which began enrolling students in May 2021.

The industrial park has also driven regional infrastructure development, funding 15 kilometers of roads and 20 bridges. The nearby Delong port in Kendari, located 12 kilometers away, now handles more than 50 million tons of cargo annually.

Local residents have expressed gratitude for the park’s positive impact, particularly during the economic challenges of the pandemic, when steady employment helped sustain livelihoods.

Zhou Yuan, General Manager of Delong Industrial Park in Indonesia, said there is strong potential for deeper Sino-Indonesian collaboration in the nickel industry. He expects the park’s nickel iron and stainless steel output to double this year, with plans expanding into the power battery sector for new energy vehicles.

Editor | SONG Ziyan

Supervisor| TIAN Xueke