Province

North Maluku

Overview Economy

Maluku – North Maluku

Covering an area of 31,982 square kilometers, and home to a population of 1.3 million people, North Maluku is a province in eastern Indonesia surrounded by seas. To the east is the Halmahera Sea, the Maluku Sea lies to the west, the Pacific Ocean stretches to the north, and the Seram Sea borders to the south. The province is divided into eight districts and two cities.

Historically, North Maluku was formally established on October 4, 1999, through Law No. 46/1999. Previously, the province functioned as a district within Maluku province, adjoining Central Halmahera. At the time of its establishment, Ternate was designated as the provincial capital. This arrangement persisted for 11 years until 2010 when the capital city was relocated to Sofifi, situated on the mainland of Halmahera, the largest island in the Maluku Islands.

The people of North Maluku represent a diverse group with a rich history and culture. The province is home to a range of ethnic groups, each with its own unique culture and language. Among them are the Madole, Pagu, Ternate, and West Makian people.

In terms of religion, Islam dominates North Maluku’s religious landscape, with 74.7 percent of the population adhering to it, followed by a significant Christian population of 24.74 percent. Other religions collectively make up less than 1 percent of the population.

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Economic Description

North Maluku boasts a robust economy, having acquired Rp 48 trillion in Gross Regional Domestic Product (GRDP) as of 2023. The top three contributing sectors are the processing industry, mining, and agriculture. The processing industry leads with Rp 14 trillion, followed by the mining sector at Rp 9 trillion, and the agriculture sector at Rp 4 trillion.

Within the processing industry, the base metal subsector contributes the most with Rp 13 trillion, almost over 90 percent of the entire industry. As of 2023, the processing industry witnessed a 48.12 percent year-on-year increase.

Regarding the mining sector, North Maluku is one of the provinces known for its downstream mineral resources. One mineral resource, nickel, has shown substantial positive effects in terms of its downstream development in the country. With North Maluku’s mining sector ranking among the top contributors to its GRDP, total investments in the province reached US$ 9.8 billion by 2022, with the majority directed towards this sector.

Furthermore, North Maluku’s agricultural sector mainly produces coconuts, cloves, nutmegs, cassava, sweet potatoes, cayenne, and plantains. Out of these commodities, coconuts account for over 60 percent of the total output. As of 2022, approximately 13,525 hectares of land were available for agricultural investment.

Given the vast and diverse sectors in North Maluku, numerous investment potentials abound in the province, ranging from the smelter nickel sulfate sector to resorts in the tourism sector. Additionally, North Maluku is home to a special economic zone (SEZ) on Morotai Island, strategically positioned in the outer zone of the eastern sea.

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Latest News

July 16, 2025

Indonesia has officially launched an electric vehicle (EV) battery ecosystem project with an investment value of US$6 billion, or about Rp100 trillion. Energy and Mineral Resources (ESDM) Minister Bahlil Lahadalia, explained that the US$1.2 billion investment in EV battery ecosystem is towards Karawang Regency, West Java Province. Meanwhile, the remaining US$4.7 billion is directed to East Halmahera Regency, North Maluku Province.

"Overall, investments for those factories are about US$5.9–6 billion, or around Rp 100 trillion," the minister said at the groundbreaking ceremony for the Integrated EV Battery Industry Ecosystem Project in the Artha Industrial Hills (AIH) area in Karawang Regency, West Java on June 29, 2025.

The ceremony for the project by state-owned enterprise (SOE) PT Mineral Industri Indonesia (MIND ID) subsidiaries PT Aneka Pertambangan (Antam) and PT Industri Baterai Indonesia (IBC), as well as battery multinational Contemporary Amperex Technology (CATL) subsidiary Ningbo Contemporary Brunp Lygend (CBL) consortium was overseen by President Prabowo Subianto.

Bahlil stated that the EV battery megaproject has directly employed 8,000 workers, and it could also indirectly create jobs for as many as 35,000 people. Moreover, the project has a multiplier effect that will impact national economic growth, which Bahlil estimated would result in US$40 billion of revenue per year for Indonesia.

"As the price rises every year, it (the multiplier effect) increases again," Bahlil said.

Six projects are being developed as part of the overall EV industry project, namely five at the FHT Industrial Park in East Halmahera Regency and one in Karawang Regency. The 43 hectares (ha) EV battery factory in Karawang sits is operated by PT Contemporary Amperex Technology Indonesia Battery (CATIB), a joint venture between IBC and CBL. It is targeted to have an initial capacity of 6.9 gigawatt-hour (GWh) in the first phase, increasing to 15 GWh in the second phase, and start commercial operations by late 2026.

Meanwhile, Antam and CBL subsidiary Hong Kong CBL (HK CBL) have established PT Feni Haltim (PT FHT) to develop a new energy industrial area in North Maluku consisting of a nickel mining project and a pyrometallurgical smelter with a targeted capacity of 88,000 tons of refined nickel alloy per year by 2027.

In addition, the North Maluku project also targets a hydrometallurgical smelter producing 55,000 tons of mixed metal hydroxide precipitates (MHP) per year by 2028, a cathode material plant producing 30,000 tons of lithium nickel manganese cobalt oxides (NCM) per year by 2028, and a battery recycling facility producing 20,000 tons of metal sulfate and lithium carbonate per year by 2031.

President Prabowo Subianto oversaw the groundbreaking for the construction of the Integrated EV Battery Industry Ecosystem project of the ANTAM-IBC-CBL Consortium in the Artha Industrial Hills (AIH) area, in Karawang, West Java, Sunday (29/6/2025).

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