WHITEPAPER DīCARBONIZINGTHīNICKīLINDUSTRYININDONīSIA Leadauthors: Dr.SofiaHazarabedian,HydrogenandCCUS,PerthDr.KeelanO'Neill,HydrogenandCCUS,Perth NatashaWitto,EnergyMarketsandStrategy,Singapore DecarbonizingthenickelindustryinIndonesia CONTīNTS Executivesummary04 Abbreviations05 1.Introduction07 2.NickelsectoroverviewandIndonesiancontext09 2.1Nickelindustryhistoryandfuture09 2.2Indonesiannickelsector11 2.3Nickelprocessingroutesandcarbonfootprint12 2.4Indonesianenergysupplyandabatementoptions16 2.5Greenandlow-carbonenergyoptions18 3.FossilfuelsalternativesassessmentfortheIndonesiannickelindustry24 4.Conceptualdecarbonizationpathways28 4.1Brownfieldcase28 4.2Greenfieldcasestudy30 5.Conclusionsandnextsteps33 References36 -2- īXīCUTIVīSUMMARY īXīCUTIVīSUMMARY Indonesiaisasignificantplayerinthenickelindustry,withover20%ofglobalnickelreserves, andbeingresponsiblefor35%ofglobalnickelproductionwith1milliontonnesofnickeloreprocessedin20233.Inrecentyears,Indonesiangovernmentmeasuresrestrictinglow-gradenickelexportshavestimulatedarapidbuildoutofdomesticrefiningcapacityandhighervalue-addedexports. However,growthinthisenergy-intensiveindustryisstronglysupportedbylocalcaptivecoal-firedpowerplants,leadingtoincreasedemissionsincompatiblewithIndonesia's net-zerogoalsandglobalbatterysupplychainsustainability.Recognizingnickel'sroleindecarbonization,thisstudyexploressolutionstodecarbonizethenickelindustryandoutlinesaroadmapforimplementation. KeynickelprocessingroutesinIndonesiaincludethepyrometallurgicalrotarykilnelectricfurnace(RKEF,44smelters)andemerginghighpressureacidleachingtechnology(HPAL,threeplants).TheRKEFprocessrefinessaproliteoresintoferronickelforstainlesssteel,whileHPALtargetslimoniteorestoproducehigh-puritynickelmainlyusedinelectricvehiclebatteries.Bothroutesrelyonfossilfuels,withRKEFemitting54tCO2eqpertonneofnickelmetalandHPAL20tCO2eq.DecarbonizingbothprocessingroutesiscrucialforthefutureofsustainablenickelprocessinginIndonesia. VarioustechnicalsolutionslargelyalreadyexisttosupportthedecarbonizationofnickelplantsinIndonesia,rangingfromoptimisingprocessefficiencytointroducinggreenenergytechnologies.Costsandassociatedcommercialchallengeshinderwidespreadadoption,andthereforeinitialeffortsnecessarilymustfocusonlow-hangingfruitsolutions.ThesemayincludesolarPV,electrochemicalbatteryenergystoragesystems(BESS),pumpedhydroelectricstorage(PHES),andindustrialheatpumps.Thechoiceoftechnologydepends onfactorslikeenergyrequirements,plantlocation,andtechnologysuitability.Eachcaserequiresatailored assessmenttodeterminetheoptimalpathwayfordecarbonization. Thisstudypresentstwoconceptualcasesillustratingtheroleoftechnologyindecarbonizingnickelprocessingroutes. ThefirstcasefocusesonanexistingRKEFplant,proposingstepssuchasconnectingtotheelectricalgrid,developingrenewablepowersupply,andreplacingcoalwithsustainably-sourcedbiomass.Theseactionscouldpotentiallyreduceemissionsby2040kt-CO2e/yearover20years,equivalenttoremoving450,000gasoline-poweredcarsannually. ThesecondcaseexploresthedevelopmentofagreenfieldHPALplant,aimingforzerodirectorelectricity-basedemissions.Keystepsincludeheatintegration,arenewableenergysystem,andreplacingtheneutralizationagent. Thesemeasurescouldtheoreticallyresultinzeroemissionsfromconstruction,incontrasttoaconventionalHPALplantpoweredbyfossilfuelsemitting589kt-CO2e/year,akintoremoving130,000gasoline-poweredcarsfromtheroad. Regulatoryandpolicymechanismsarecrucialtoincentivizefuturedecarbonizationeffortsinnickelprocessingplantsandseveralconceptsareintroduced: •Enhancingcaptivecoal-firedpowerplant(CFPP)regulationtoensurereliablerenewablesupplyfornickelprocessingfacilities,possiblythroughindustrialcarbontaxationortradingsystems. •Providingcapitalfinancingforrenewablepowergenerationandlow-carbonrefiningtechnologies. •Establishingagreennickelguaranteeoforiginscheme. PROCESSINGROUTE ORE NICKELPRODUCT DECARBONIZATIONPATHWAYEXAMPLEINCLUDES Batteries Efficiencyimprovement,biomass,solarPV,batteries,geothermal,mitigatingprocessemissions Demandwillincreaseandshortageinsupplyexpected 20tonnesofCO2equivalent Class1 >99.8%Ni Limonite underutilized SolarPV,batteries,pumpedhydroelectricstorage,Biochar Stablegrowth,demandandsuppliedbalanced Stainlesssteel 54tonnesofCO2equivalent Class2 15-45%Ni Saprolite High-gradeandscarcityanticipated MARKETTRENDS ENDUSE GHGEMISSIONSPERTONNEOFNiINPRODUCT HydrometallurgicalHPAL PyrometallurgicalRKEF NickelrefiningindustryinIndonesia:currentstateandcleanfuture ABBRīVIATIONS CAPEX Capitalexpenditures CCUS Carboncapture,utilizationandstorage CFPP Coal-firedpowerplant CSP Concentratedsolarpower CST Concentratedsolarthermal EAF Electricarcfurnace EV Electricvehicle GFANZ GlasgowFinancialAllianceforNetZero GHG Greenhousegasemissions HPAL Highpressureacidleaching IBC IndonesianBatteryCorporation IPP Independentpowerprovider JETP JustEnergyTransitionPartnership LCOE Levelizedcostofenergy LCOS Levelizedcostofstorage MEMR/ESDM IndonesianMinistryofEnergyandMineralResources NPI Nickelpigiron O