Merdeka Group’s Commitment to Sustainability and Energy Transition at the LIKE 2 Festival
Merdeka Group participated in the LIKE 2 Festival, an annual event of the Ministry of Environment and Forestry from August 8–11, 2024, at the Jakarta Convention Center. The festival, focusing on environmental, climate, forestry, and renewable energy issues celebrates a decade of sustainability initiatives in Indonesia. LIKE 2 is also part of the lead-up to COP 29 in Baku, Azerbaijan, this November.
At the festival, Merdeka Group showcased an exhibition booth representing PT Merdeka Copper Gold Tbk and PT Merdeka Battery Materials Tbk (MBM). The booth featured posters, videos, infographics, and various mineral samples, highlighting Merdeka’s sustainability performance and how the company optimizes every mined mineral to create valuable products, especially for the global electric vehicle industry. The booth also hosted recycling workshops, transforming used cans into plant pots and leftover textile materials into tote bags.
On the second day of the festival, three speakers from Merdeka Group participated in a talk show titled “Optimizing the Integrated Electric Vehicle Battery Supply Chain to Support Global Energy Transition and National Decarbonization Agenda.”
Muhammad Toha, General Manager of Compliance, began the discussion by emphasizing Indonesia’s significant potential in the nickel industry, which accounts for 23.7% of the world’s nickel reserves. He explained how MBM utilizes new technology to process low-grade nickel that was previously considered unvaluable. MBM’s business assets, such as the Sulawesi Cahaya Mineral (SCM) nickel mine, the AIM (Acid, Iron, Metal) Plant, and the advanced smelting technologies being developed, including the Rotary Kiln Electric Furnace (RKEF) and High-Pressure Acid Leach (HPAL) facilities, will play a critical role in supporting the global energy transition.
Bahtiar Manurung, Sustainability Manager, continued by outlining Merdeka Group’s commitment to sustainability through clear and comprehensive policies, strategies, and governance. He stressed the importance of achieving Net Zero Emissions by 2050 for Scope 1 and 2 and highlighted the development of the Climate Change Policy. Merdeka Group has also purchased Renewable Energy Certificates from PT PLN (Persero), ensuring that 100 percent of the electricity for the Tujuh Bukit Gold Mine now comes from renewable energy sources. Additionally, solar panels have been installed at the Wetar Copper Mine, and a 35% biodiesel blend is being used for operational vehicles across all of Merdeka Group’s mining sites.
Eben Ezer Sirait, Environmental Manager, concluded the session by discussing Merdeka Group’s innovative and sustainable environmental management practices. He explained how Merdeka adopts a circular approach in its business by utilizing residual ore from the Wetar Copper Mine as feedstock for the AIM Plant. This plant produces sulfuric acid and saturated steam, which will be used at the HPAL plant. The use of by-products from ore processing at the Wetar Copper Mine is a form of mineral conservation—while also conserving the environment, as the once environmentally burdensome acid-containing ore is now processed into valuable raw materials.
Merdeka Group’s participation in LIKE 2 Festival reflects the company’s commitment to sustainability and its active role in the global energy transition and decarbonization efforts. This involvement aligns with the festival’s spirit, which underscores the importance of balancing industry with conservation for the future.
