Indonesian president Joko Widodo has made public announcement that the country aims to become "huge ecosystem of electric cars". The President has previously met with Tesla Chief Executive Elon Musk discussing potential investments and commented that Tesla must set-up car manufacturing plant in Indonesia and not just exploit the country for its rich in nickel resources.
Tesla have recently struck deals worth about US$5 billion to buy nickel products from Indonesia. It is also expected that the Indonesian government will impose a tax on nickel exports in order to boost revenues.
Indonesia wants to move away from exporting raw materials, to focus instead on developing its downstream industries. The move is expected to create jobs, generate tax income for the country and new business opportunities.
Many other automobile manufacturers are seriously considering Indonesia as a production base for their EV ranges.