Ecobiz.asia – Indonesia’s nickel industry now spans much of the value chain, from nickel ore processing to battery recycling, as the government’s downstreaming policy expands the country’s industrial base, Investment Minister Rosan P. Roeslani said.
Speaking at the Investor Daily Summit 2026 on Wednesday (Oct. 7, 2026), Rosan said Indonesia’s nickel industry now covers nickel ore processing, anode and cathode materials, battery cells, battery packs and battery recycling.
“In nickel, we have one of the good and comprehensive downstreaming industries. In other sectors, downstreaming may only cover one or two stages, but in nickel, the entire ecosystem is already here,” Rosan said.
The expansion of the nickel value chain has significantly increased the value of Indonesia’s nickel exports, he said.
Before the government implemented its nickel downstreaming policy, nickel exports were valued at around US$3.3 billion in 2016–2017. By 2025, the value had increased to around US$33 billion, representing a tenfold increase, Rosan said.
“So the increase is tenfold in terms of value added and industrialization that has taken place,” he said.
Rosan said the government views downstreaming as part of a broader industrialization strategy rather than simply an effort to process raw materials domestically.
“What is the ultimate purpose of downstreaming? Downstreaming is industrialization,” he said.
He said Indonesia needs a strong industrial base to sustain long-term economic growth.
“We believe that if we do not have a strong industrial sector, Indonesia will not have sustainable economic growth. So the ultimate goal is industrialization,” Rosan said.
The government will continue to prioritize downstreaming as part of Indonesia’s economic transformation, he said.
“Downstreaming is one of the engines of transformation, while investment is the engine of growth,” Rosan said.
Investment Climate Needs Further Reform
Rosan said Indonesia must continue improving its investment climate to support further industrialization and attract new investment.
“We have to keep reforming ourselves in terms of policy and regulation,” he said.
Indonesia is competing with neighboring countries that are also reforming their policies and regulations to make investment processes faster, more measurable and structured, he said.
Against this backdrop, the Investment Ministry is continuing to improve the country’s investment licensing system.
Rosan said the government had connected the Online Single Submission (OSS) system with 18 ministries and government agencies following the issuance of Government Regulation No. 28.
“With Government Regulation No. 28, we have now connected our OSS, the Online Single Submission system, with 18 ministries and agencies,” he said.
The integration is designed to automate licensing processes across relevant government institutions and provide greater certainty for investors, Rosan said.
“With 18 ministries and agencies connected automatically, this will provide certainty in terms of licensing,” he said.
Rosan said continued regulatory reform and improvements to the investment licensing system would be important as Indonesia seeks to expand downstream industries and attract investment into higher-value industrial activities. ***
