[SMM Analysis] 2024 Indonesia Nickel and Cobalt Mining Conference Tracking - Strategic Significance of Critical Minerals and Subsequent Developments by the Indonesian Government

According to on-site reports from the 2024 Indonesia Nickel and Cobalt Mining Conference, many countries are beginning to strengthen their efforts in energy transition and economic resilience due to the worsening impact of climate change.

With increasing demand, these mineral producers, primarily developing countries, are encountering a paradox where resource-rich countries fail to optimize their natural wealth. This situation becomes a key challenge for them: how can developing countries avoid the paradox and instead reallocate their economic frameworks to ensure fair, sustainable, and inclusive economic growth? As a middle-income country and the third-largest democracy, Indonesia is unique among developing countries.

In the coming decades, mineral demand will be related to energy transition, population growth, and middle-class economic growth. Indonesia believes that from 2020 to 2050, the global population will grow to 9.6 billion, and the increase in other renewable energy, including solar and hydrogen, is expected to be more than 1.6 times the 2020 level. The renewable resource capacity for net-zero transition is expected to increase from 0.3 TW2 in 2020 to 1.7 TW2 in 2025.

In this context, from 2010 to 2030, the demand for nickel resources is expected to maintain an overall growth rate of 6%, while the demand for cobalt resources is expected to slow from a growth rate of 9% to 6%. The demand for copper and aluminum resources is expected to maintain stable growth with a CAGR of 5%.