As announced by the Prime Minister’s Department, Anthony Albanese will welcome Joko Widodo, President of the Republic of Indonesia and his wife, Mrs Iriana Widodo, to Australia, arriving in Sydney today 03 July, and holding meetings in Canberra on Tuesday and Wednesday.
During the visit, Leaders will hold the 8th Australia-Indonesia Annual Leaders’ Meeting. Leaders will discuss existing areas of cooperation under the Comprehensive Strategic Partnership, as well as deepening commercial and economic links and opportunities for both countries through the transition to net zero.
Mr Widodo will be accompanied by his trade and economic ministers, and Australia’s presence in Indonesia’s strongly growing economy will be a focus of discussions – both sides agree it is underdone. Regional security, the role of ASEAN, and Indonesia’s desire for easier access to Australia through a simplified visa process are also on the agenda.
Given Indonesia’s large population and proximity as a neighbouring country, it can be said that trade between the two countries is very much under-performing. Although Indonesia is the strongest economy in South east Asia, it is only Australia’s 10th biggest export market and our 16th largest source of imports.
It is expected that Mr Widodo will want to discuss the potential for supplying Australia with electric vehicles (EV), as well as the batteries that are needed to run them. Like Australia, Indonesia is rich in a lot of minerals, such as nickel, bauxite and aluminium and now intends to build an end-to-end EV supply chain on its own shores, instead of exporting its mineral wealth to China and other foreign countries. But it does not have sufficient lithium.
Australia is home to at least half the world’s lithium resources, while Indonesia has the world’s largest reserves of nickel, two critical minerals in the production of EV batteries.
“Indonesia and Australia have a great potential for integration,” Mr Widodo told The Australian Financial Review in an interview ahead of his meetings with Mr Albanese. “Indonesia has the world’s largest nickel reserves, Australia [is] the world’s largest main lithium producer. I think this will be a great global effort to promote green transportation for a greener world future.”
“I will focus on this,” he said. “This is very important for Indonesia and also for Australia.”
Indonesia has the labour force to make Widodo’s EV dream a reality. It is still in the sweet spot of its demographic transition, with over 70% of its population of prime working age.
As one of the fastest growing economies in the Indo-Pacific, Indonesia presents a significant opportunity for Australian businesses. By some estimates, Indonesia will be the world’s fifth-largest economy by 2030.
Australia and Indonesia can build upon the bilateral relationship’s existing foundations, including the flagship Indonesia-Australia Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (IA-CEPA), RCEP and the ASEAN-Australia-New Zealand Free Trade Agreement. Indonesia seeks closer consultation in response to the Indo-Pacific Economic Framework and to leverage new plurilateral mechanisms, including initiatives that it is now taking within ASEAN and towards dialogue partners.
Colless Young’s international network includes Indonesia with an office based in Bali. We are able to collect and arrange shipment from all islands and provinces in Indonesia, and cover major shipping ports such as Jakarta, Surabaya and Belawan Sumatra. To talk with us for more information about service and rates, use the form at the righthand side of this page or go to our contact page.
As licensed Customs Brokers and International Freight Forwarders, we handle all your transport needs, by both air and sea cargo. We are based in Brisbane and offer a complete range of logistics services – import and export – through all Australian ports and airports.
