IN SUMMARY
Indonesia produces more than 60% of the world’s nickel, making it indispensable to EV battery supply as cathodes shift toward nickel-rich chemistries. But the route that built that dominance, pyrometallurgical processing of saprolite ore into nickel pig iron and matte, is among the most carbon-intensive in the global mining sector. Minviro’s life cycle assessment quantifies that footprint, models how fast Indonesia’s reserves are depleting, and shows how far emissions could be cut. The conclusion is stark: without decarbonisation, high-carbon Indonesian nickel risks undermining the very EVs it supplies and losing access to key markets.
The footprint is among the highest in nickel. Producing 1 kg of nickel in NPI emits 84 kg CO₂e, rising to 97 kg CO₂e for nickel matte, with over 99% of emissions occurring in pyrometallurgical processing.
Coal-fired electricity is the main hotspot. Around half of emissions come from electricity, most of it from captive coal power plants, with process heat and reductants adding roughly 30% and direct process emissions about 10%.
The decarbonisation opportunity is large. Meeting Indonesia’s 30% renewable target by 2030 would cut emissions 17%, full renewable power up to 73%, and combined measures up to 83%.
Why Indonesian nickel sits at a turning point
Nickel has become the largest single metal input in modern EV batteries, with high-nickel cathodes like NMC 811 and NMC 955 raising energy density and cutting cobalt dependence. The IEA projects clean-energy nickel demand to almost quadruple by 2040, and Indonesia, with over 70 million tonnes of reserves, will be central to meeting it. The catch is the production route. Most Indonesian nickel comes from laterite saprolite ore processed via the rotary kiln-electric furnace (RKEF) route into nickel pig iron and matte, which has enabled rapid supply growth but carries one of the highest carbon footprints in mining. This creates a paradox: the country supplying the materials for electrification is doing so through one of the most emissions-intensive pathways available.
How the study was built
Minviro ran a life cycle assessment in its XYCLE software following ISO 14040 and 14067, with a functional unit of 1 kg of nickel contained in either NPI or nickel matte and a system boundary spanning mining, drying, calcination, smelting and refining, including upstream fuel and electricity. The model combines first-principles engineering with material and energy balances, using primary data from Indonesia’s energy ministry and the nickel miners’ association alongside peer-reviewed literature. Results were validated against operational data from selected smelters. A separate reserve resilience model simulated how fast saprolite reserves deplete under three build-out scenarios, and sensitivity analyses tested feedstock, electricity mix, fuel and chemical inputs.