Ford to build EV plant next to one the world’s largest sources of nickel
After losing ground in China and Europe, Ford looks to expand in a market full of untapped potential for electric vehicles – Indonesia. The automaker is investing in an EV plant in Indonesia – the world’s largest producer of nickel – setting up shop next to its joint venture $4.5 billion nickel processing project in the country.
While Ford has yet to officially confirm reports, the Indonesian government is said to have already held talks with several global car manufacturers – “including with Volkswagen Group and Ford,” according to reports.
Ford is currently making massive job cuts in Europe and losing market share in China, but it sees Indonesia as a potential bright spot. The automaker returned to the Indonesian market in 2022 after a six-year absence through its partnership with Bangkok-based RMA Group. Ford now sells the Thai-made Ranger pickup truck and Everest SUV, with a combined 664 deliveries so far this year.
But Indonesia is focusing on EVs for two reasons, to exploit the country’s rich nickel resources and push for job creation for its huge, young workforce. It has been courting automakers to invest in the country, drawing on its market size, low car penetration, and strategic position to South Asian markets as key selling points. As for nickel, Indonesia produces 20.6% of the global total.
At an event in Jakarta, deputy Industry Minister, Faisol Riza told reporters that “Ford has promised to realize its factory and investment in Indonesia by next year,” according to media including the Jakarta Post and Global Data-owned Just Auto.
Last year, Ford joined global mining giant Vale and China’s Zhejiang Huayou Cobalt Company in investing in a $4.5 billion nickel processing project on the Indonesian island of Sulawesi, with operations expected to start in 2026. The mine is expected to produce up to 120,000 tonnes of a nickel intermediate product per year for EV battery cathodes.
Since President Prabowo Subianto took office in October, the Indonesian government has been in talks with a few major automakers, including Volkswagen and Ford. “It looks like some of the global vehicle manufacturers that were once here and then disappeared will be coming back,” Faisol Riza said at the event. “We aim for all manufacturers to establish factories in Indonesia because of their high social and economic impact, particularly in job creation.”
Indonesia plans to boost local content requirements for BEVs to 40% by the end of 2026, rising in stages to 80% by the end of 2030.
Photo credit: Ford
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Hyundai is about to launch a new electric SUV in China. With its big debut coming up, Hyundai just dropped a sneak peek, and it looks like it could be the IONIQ 4. Check it out for yourself in the video below.
Is Hyundai teasing the IONIQ 4?
We caught our first glimpse of the new EV model last month after Beijing Hyundai released a few official “spy” photos.
Despite the camouflage, you can see a few design elements, like a light bar across the front, slim LED headlights, and a closed-off grille. At first, it almost looks like a smaller version of the IONIQ 9, Hyundai’s first three-row electric SUV, but with a much sportier, shaped profile.
Beijing Hyundai released a new teaser for the upcoming electric SUV this week. The video shows “a wave of high-end operations” as the vehicle dances across the snow.
The video highlights features like real-time torque control, high-speed cornering, and the SUV’s impressive body control while driving around cones.
Hyundai’s new electric SUV is being called “OE” internally, according to The Korean Car Blog, suggesting it could be an IONIQ model.
All other Hyundai IONIQ EV models were also codenamed with an “E” internally, which is raising speculation that this could be the IONIQ 4.
Like most global OEMs, Hyundai is fighting to compete in an intense Chinese EV market, which is dominated by domestic automakers like BYD.
Hyundai opened its first overseas R&D center last year in China to spearhead its comeback. It will work with local suppliers and tech companies to develop EVs designed for Chinese buyers. The new electric SUV is expected to launch in China later this year, followed by three new energy vehicles, including EVs and EREVs.
Beijing Hyundai will release more information on April 16, with the electric SUV set to “challenge the limit of driving performance.”
What do you think of Hyundai’s new electric SUV? Is this the IONIQ 4? Let us know your thoughts in the comments.
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Charge point provider char.gy has secured a £130 million contract to install 6,000 curbside EV chargers for Brighton and Hove City Council (BHCC) – the UK’s largest installation of its kind.
London-based char.gy has also been awarded a 15-year contract to operate and maintain the charging network.
Installing Level 2 chargers curbside, where most drivers in the UK park, will enable more people to take advantage of cheaper charging rates while juicing up their EVs overnight. (charg.gy’s pay as you go night tariff, between midnight and 7 am, is £0.39/kWh, compared to its £0.59/kWh day tariff.)
John Lewis, chief executive of char.gy, said the project is “a huge moment for the UK and its EV ambitions. This partnership alone will empower thousands of residents to confidently make the switch to electric vehicles, knowing they have easy access to chargers.”
Brighton and Hove City Council is among the first to tap into the government’s Local EV Infrastructure (LEVI) Fund, designed to help English local authorities roll out charging solutions for residents without off-street parking. Future of Roads Minister Lilian Greenwood said making EV charging as accessible as possible is “crucial to making the switch to electric a success.”
The UK now has over 75,000 public EV chargers, according to the Department for Transport—and it looks like the country’s on pace to hit its 2030 target. Back in December, the National Audit Office said the rollout is “on track” to meet the DfT’s estimate that at least 300,000 chargers will be needed by the end of the decade.
Read more: Meet the UK’s largest solar + storage EV charging ‘Superhub’
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