Tesla May Invest in Manufacturing Battery Materials in Indonesia, Minister says

Tesla may make significant investments in Indonesia. The company will focus on manufacturing materials for lithium batteries, a senior minister said. Tesla may make an official announcement in the coming months, after a visit to the country.

Tesla plans to invest in manufacturing in Indonesia

Indonesia said on Monday that Tesla plans to invest in the production of battery materials in the country. Senior Minister Luhut Pandjaitan said in an Instagram post that he had a meeting with Tesla CEO Elon Musk during a recent trip to San Francisco. During it, Musk told him about the investment plan for the country.

In his Instagram video, which was translated to Tesla Magazine by @asunapg/X, Luhut mentioned that he asked Musk to sign a memorandum of understanding. He noted that its signing would not be an agreement obliging further actions. Musk said he should discuss this with the team first. However, the minister said that Musk “wants to invest in the production of materials for lithium batteries.”

For further negotiations, Musk should visit Indonesia in September-October of this year. “We will just wait for Elon to come here, sometime between September end or October this year,” Luhut said. Obviously, the official announcement of the company will be made only after Tesla and Indonesia come to an agreement. This will not be possible until Musk visits the country.

Musk talks about halting Tesla investments

Luhut had a two-and-a-half-hour meeting with Musk. He said it was the main reason for his visit to the US. The CEO of the company and the minister discussed the economic development of Indonesia, as well as the current state of Tesla. According to Luhut, the company is currently suspending investments in vehicle production in any country. The reasons for this are overproduction and the current unfavorable world economic situation.

The leaders discussed the development of Starlink in Indonesia

Luhut said he also discussed Musk’s interest in collaborating to build a low-cost internet network in eastern Indonesia through Starlink. The minister told him that the benefits of Starlink’s operation in Indonesia are enormous. For example, it can become critical to healthcare infrastructure. Internet access at health centers in remote areas can help health professionals report real-time health facility data. In addition, Starlink will have a beneficial effect on the development of education. The eastern part of Indonesia lags behind in this. Starlink could help achieve equal access to education in Indonesia.