China has formally asked Indonesia to establish a more predictable and transparent regulatory environment for its mineral industry. Commerce Minister Wang Wentao raised the issue during a recent meeting in Shanghai with Indonesian Coordinating Minister for Economic Affairs Airlangga Hartarto, information from a statement released by China’s Ministry of Commerce on Saturday. Wang called for stable, clear policies and progress on joint initiatives, including the “Two Countries, Twin Parks” project.
The request comes as Indonesia’s downstreaming strategy has made the country basic to global nickel supply. Jakarta has restricted exports of unprocessed minerals to encourage domestic refining. It banned raw nickel-ore exports in 2020, extended the approach to bauxite in June 2023 and introduced restrictions on copper concentrates in 2024. Law No. 3/2020 amended Indonesia’s mining structure and required bauxite miners to sell ore to domestic smelters. The policy aims to retain more processing value at home, but predictable rules also matter to companies committing capital to mines, smelters and related infrastructure.
The scale of investment helps explain Beijing’s focus. Indonesia accounted for an estimated 62% of global mined nickel output in 2024. Chinese investment in Indonesian nickel refining was estimated at about US$30 billion that year, with Chinese companies representing roughly 75% of refining capacity, according to figures attributed to the International Energy Agency. A separate report citing U.S. Geological Survey data put Indonesia’s 2025 output at 2.6 million tonnes out of 3.9 million tonnes globally, or about 67%. These estimates show how Indonesian policy can affect Chinese manufacturers, battery supply chains and nickel markets well beyond Southeast Asia.
Jakarta points to rising earnings from processed minerals as evidence of the strategy’s economic impact. Government figures cited by the Jakarta Globe put the value of Indonesian nickel-derivative exports at US$3.3 billion in 2017 and US$33.9 billion in 2024. The government has set a US$45 billion nickel-export target for 2026, after reported export values topped US$40 billion in 2025. Its broader downstreaming roadmap reportedly aims to attract US$618 billion in investment through 2040 across sectors including minerals and coal, oil and gas, forestry, fisheries and agriculture.
The policy has also faced trade challenges. The European Union challenged Indonesia’s nickel-export restrictions at the World Trade Organization, arguing that they limited access to raw nickel and harmed European steelmakers. Indonesia has defended the restrictions as part of its effort to develop domestic processing and increase the value of mineral exports. For Spain and other EU economies, the outcome matters because shifts in Indonesian production or Chinese investment may affect the availability and price of mineral inputs for manufacturers as Europe seeks to diversify supply.
The “Two Countries, Twin Parks” initiative gives the bilateral discussions a wider industrial context. The China-Indonesia cooperation platform, associated with the Belt and Road Initiative, has a reported planned area of 61 square kilometres and more than 250 operating industrial enterprises. Its ambitions extend beyond extraction to industrial production, logistics and cross-border supply chains. That makes regulatory predictability relevant to land, infrastructure, utilities and operations, as well as mining permits.
Indonesia’s next stated ambition is to advance further along the battery supply chain. The nearly US$6 billion Indonesia Battery Integration Project involves CATL subsidiary CBL, state-owned miner PT Aneka Tambang (Antam) and Indonesia Battery Corporation. Its planned activities span nickel mining and processing, battery materials, cell manufacturing and recycling. The project shows the scale and breadth of investment exposed to policy changes, while the wider partnership reflects a reciprocal relationship: Indonesia brings mineral resources and a strategic production base; Chinese companies contribute capital, technology and industrial capacity.
For China, clearer rules would support planning across refining, battery materials and manufacturing. Indonesia must sustain investment while pursuing domestic value addition. For European manufacturers, resulting shifts in mineral flows could affect supply options and input costs. Wang and Airlangga’s discussions so concern bilateral projects and the supply chains linking Indonesia’s mineral sector to industrial markets worldwide.
