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In the past two years, Indonesia has redrawn its copper map. National cathode refining capacity now exceeds 1.1 million tonnes a year by design, across three smelters: PT Freeport Indonesia's Manyar smelter in JIIPE, Gresik (about 600,000 tonnes), PT Smelting in Gresik (342,000 tonnes) and PT Amman Mineral Nusa Tenggara's smelter in Sumbawa (220,000 tonnes), which reached full operation in June 2026. The timing is good: LME copper traded around US$14,000 per tonne in August 2026, and the year-to-date average was about 39% above the same period of 2025.
The challenge is no longer refining copper. It is using it at home.
The paradox: plenty of cathode, little domestic use
According to PTFI President Director Tony Wenas, domestic demand for copper cathode is about 300,000–400,000 tonnes a year. PTFI has also said that of roughly 800,000 tonnes of cathode capacity, less than half is absorbed by Indonesian industry. About three-quarters of PT Smelting's output is still exported, mostly to Malaysia, Thailand and Vietnam.
In other words, neighboring countries turn Indonesian cathode into rod, wire, cable and tube, and some of those products return to Indonesia as imports. PTFI points to copper tube for air conditioners, which is not yet made in Indonesia despite its high copper content. Meanwhile, the domestic cable industry is said to need about 600,000 tonnes of copper a year.
The demand that is coming
Several large programs will push Indonesia's copper use higher:
- The grid: RUPTL 2025–2034 targets nearly 48,000 km of transmission circuits and 108,000 MVA of substation capacity
- Renewables: the 100 GWp Solar Power Program and 320 GWh of battery storage, which need copper cable, busbars and foil
- EVs and batteries: battery cell plants in Karawang and Hailiang's copper foil plant in JIIPE, with potential cathode demand of about 100,000 tonnes a year
Downstream opportunities
|
Product |
Used in |
Demand driver |
|---|---|---|
|
Copper rod |
Feedstock for wire and cable |
The whole cable and electrical industry |
|
Power wire and cable |
Transmission, distribution, building wiring |
PLN grid, industrial estates, housing |
|
Copper tube |
Air conditioning, refrigeration, heat exchangers |
Not yet produced domestically |
|
Copper foil |
EV batteries, PCBs |
Battery and electronics plants |
|
Enamelled wire and busbars |
Motors, transformers, switchboards, data centers |
Industrial electrification and renewables |
Every tonne of cathode turned into finished products at home adds value and jobs, and cuts imports.
Why JIIPE
- Cathode source inside the estate: the Manyar smelter is in JIIPE, and PT Smelting is in Gresik
- A working ecosystem: Hailiang produces copper foil in JIIPE, proof that copper downstream plants can be built quickly here
- A deep-sea port inside the estate for exporting copper products to Southeast Asia and beyond
- Gresik SEZ incentives, including a 10- to 20-year tax holiday depending on investment size
Indonesia already refines its own copper. The next step is to use it. Talk to the JIIPE team about land, utilities and SEZ incentives for your copper rod, cable, tube or foil plant.