"Electric vehicles can drive more responsible mining" 12 February 2021

[...] [T]he area’s nickel deposits are attracting the attention of electric vehicle manufacturers, which rely on batteries containing nickel and other minerals like lithium and cobalt. Nickel demand is expected to increase six-fold by 2030 and Indonesia, which is already the world’s largest nickel producer, is dramatically scaling up production to meet it.

But it will require an about-face on a pollution problem that has plagued the country’s mining sector for years: deep sea disposal of mine waste, known as tailings. Indonesians have long opposed the practice, citing evidence that the tailings would decimate fragile reefs and strain fisheries already suffering the impacts of the coal plants used to power existing operations. [...]

Viable and affordable alternatives for managing tailings are proven and broadly employed across the mining industry. And by improving the efficiency with which we use and reuse existing mineral supplies, we can minimise the need for additional mining. [...]

Pressure is mounting from consumers and investors to ensure that mineral sourcing for electric vehicle batteries and other low-carbon technologies is as responsible as possible. Failing to get ahead of this issue could damage cleantech companies’ reputations – or worse, the reputation of the clean energy transition itself. And that, as the climate models indicate, would be catastrophic.