During the 48th ASEAN Summit in the Philippines on May 7, 2026, Indonesian Minister of Energy and Mineral Resources Bahlil Lahadalia stated that Indonesia is open to cooperating with the Philippines on nickel supply to bolster the regional electric vehicle battery ecosystem. While Indonesia is not currently planning upstream investments in the Philippines, Bahlil emphasized that the Philippines could serve as a vital raw material supplier should Indonesian domestic supply face shortages, highlighting a strategic effort to build a unified energy strength within Southeast Asia.

EVelution Energy has secured a long-term cobalt offtake agreement worth $850 million with Mitsui. Under the deal, EVelution Energy will supply Mitsui with the vast majority of cobalt metal output from its under-development project in Yuma County, Arizona, with an annual contained cobalt supply capacity of up to 3,000 metric tons. Once commissioned, the new refining facility will have a maximum annual capacity of up to 7,000 metric tons of cobalt sulfate and cobalt metal, covering substantial cobalt demand across the U.S. aerospace, electric vehicle battery and advanced manufacturing sectors. The project is scheduled to start construction in early 2027 and be completed by the end of 2029.

On April 23, Sunwoda Electronic Co., Ltd. released its 2025 annual report. The report shows that the company achieved operating revenue of 63.246 billion yuan in 2025, a year-on-year increase of 12.90%. Consumer battery revenue was 31.406 billion yuan, accounting for 49.66% of total revenue, a year-on-year increase of 3.29%; electric vehicle battery revenue was 18.908 billion yuan, accounting for 29.90%, a year-on-year increase of 24.90%; energy storage system business revenue was 2.313 billion yuan, accounting for 3.66%, a year-on-year increase of 22.42%.

On Feb. 20 (local time), Ganfeng Lithium, the world’s largest lithium metal producer, reportedly began mass production of semi-solid-state batteries with an energy density of 650Wh/kg. The company has secured major electric vehicle battery material supply agreements with leading OEMs, including Tesla, Volkswagen, and Hyundai Motor.

China’s BYD, the world’s largest electric vehicle and battery manufacturer, has begun construction of its first electric vehicle battery plant in Vietnam in partnership with local automaker Kim Long Motor. The battery plant project involves a total investment of USD 130 million and will be expanded in two phases. In the first phase, BYD will build a production line with an annual capacity of 3 GWh on a 4.4-hectare site. In the second phase, the site will be expanded to 10 hectares, increasing total annual capacity to 6 GWh, with plans to broaden the product portfolio to include batteries for passenger vehicles.

In the first quarter of 2025, PT Merdeka Battery Materials Tbk. (MBMA), a subsidiary of Merdeka Copper Gold, demonstrated strong performance in its nickel business despite ongoing low nickel prices. The SCM mine achieved year-on-year growth in ore production while significantly reducing costs. A major operational highlight was the AIM acid plant setting a quarterly production record of 168,738 tons of acid. MBMA also made two key advances in its downstream strategy: in December 2024, PT ESG New Energy Material produced its first batch of MHP nickel, marking Merdeka’s official entry into the battery-grade materials sector; in January 2025, construction began on the PT Sulawesi Nickel Cobalt (SLNC) HPAL plant, which is expected to produce 90,000 tons of MHP nickel annually and aims to begin operations within 18 months. PT ESG and PT SLNC together form the foundation of Merdeka’s integrated battery materials value chain, positioning the company as an emerging player in the global electric vehicle battery supply chain. However, unaudited quarterly revenue fell 7% year-on-year to USD 504 million, mainly due to a USD 79 million drop in nickel-related income.