WTI crude futures fell further toward US$72 per barrel on Friday and are on track for an over 6% weekly drop due to fading expectations of immediate interest rate cuts in the largest global economy, influenced by U.S. jobs data, Tradingeconomics.com reported. Indonesia, meanwhile, is set to record highest investment commitment in the past seven years. 

Erick Thohir, minister of state-owned enterprises, who formally has joined the campaign of Prabowo-Gibran, talked a lot about green energy and greenflation recently. On Saturday, Feb 3, Thohir, whose brother Boy Thohir generates most wealth from thermal coal, said one of the solutions to boost Indonesia’s energy sufficiency is by developing ethanol from sugar. Seriously?

The biggest irony of all discussions surrounding nickel industry in Indonesia is the fact that state nickel producer Aneka Tambang (ANTM) has been lagging Chinese companies in adding value to the commodity. Worse, some of its lucrative assets have been handed over to CATL, the world’s largest EV battery manufacturer.

Against all odds, amidst downfall of profit margins, coal miner Harum Energy (HRUM), which has invested more in nickel industry in the past few years, has acquired more shares in PT Westrong Metal Industry (WMI), a company engaged in the nickel processing.

Shares of nickel producers listed on the Indonesia Stock Exchange (IDX) mostly closed in red on Monday (Jan 29) as nickel moved in narrow range on the London Metal Exchange (LME). Nickel was settled at US$16,538 per ton on LME Monday, representing 42.32% fall year-on-year due to significant increase in supply from Indonesia. In the short-medium term, the commodity might not be able to gain much because more new capacities will enter commercial operation this year.

The signature 35,000 MW program initiated by President Joko ‘Jokowi’ Widodo has not yet been completed towards the end of his term of office. The completion of the ambitious project launched in 2015 is far behind the planned target. This is seen a blessing in disguise...

Nickel miner Adhi Kartiko Pratama (NICE) has been officially acquired by LX International Corp, previously LG International Corp (South Korea), a trading arm of LG, at price of Rp435 per share or Rp1.59 trillion in total, representing 60% of NICE’s enlarged capital.

In the past few weeks, we’re surprised by renewed interest from global investment community in Indonesia’s oil and gas industry, including those involved in offshore supporting services. 

Nickel gained 2.11% to US$16,900 on the London Metal Exchange Wednesday (Dec 27), but still way below peak last year as investors are worried about oversupply in the short-medium term. Aggressive expansion of nickel processing facilities in Indonesia will continue to weigh on recovery of the commodity, which is key in the production of stainless steel and electric vehicle battery.