In order to promote the extension of the industry chain and high-quality development of lateritic nickel ore mineral resources by Indonesian local nickel mining companies, achieve deep integration of Indonesian local resources and Chinese technology, connect the "Indonesian resources-Korean materials-European and American markets" model, and effectively respond to the challenge of the US IRA Act, on September 24, 2023, GEM and Indonesian nickel resources industry giant PT Merdeka Battery Materials Tbk (hereinafter referred to as "Merdeka") signed a joint venture agreement on the construction of HPAL project for new energy lateritic nickel ore (nickel intermediates) (30,000 tons of nickel/year) in Jakarta, the capital of Indonesia.

The signing ceremony was witnessed by Mr. Winato Kartono, Chairman of the Board of Supervisors of Merdeka, and Professor Xu Kaihua, Chairman of GEM, attended the ceremony. Ms. Jona Widhagdo Putri, Special Advisor of the Minister of Maritime Affairs and Investment Coordination of Indonesia and Deputy Secretary-General of the Secretariat of the Indonesia-China High-Level Dialogue and Cooperation Mechanism, Mr. Jason Laurence Greive, CEO of Merdeka, Devin Antonio Ridwan, Chairman of Merdeka, Shi Hongchao, Vice President of Business Development of Merdeka, Santoso Kartono, representative of Merdeka's shareholders, and James Nicholas, Director of SIP, were also present at the signing ceremony.

According to the agreement, all parties jointly invest in and build a HAPL projectfor lateritic nickel ore in Morowali Industrial Park, Central Sulawesi Province, Indonesia-PT ESG New Energy Material (hereinafter referred to as the "ESG"), with a planned annual production of 30,000 tons of nickel intermediate products. Among them, Merdeka holds 55% of the equity of the joint venture company through its subsidiaries, and GEM holds 45% of the equity of the joint venture company through its subsidiaries. Through the strategic cooperation of resources, technology, and capital, all parties will build a high-tech nickel resource factory, jointly creating an industrial chain of lateritic nickel ore to produce new energy materials and new energy materials with global competitiveness to meet the needs of the global new energy materials market. This cooperation marks a new era of cooperation between Chinese and Indonesian enterprises, which represents a deepening cooperation between Indonesia's resource advantages and China's engineering and technological advantages and promotes the high-quality development of Indonesia's resources.

During the signing ceremony, Mr. Winato Kartono, Chairman of the Board of Supervisors of Merdeka, delivered a speech in which he pointed out that the key to making good use of Indonesia's rich mineral resources lies in having talented people. Therefore, he expressed his sincere gratitude to Indonesian President Joko Widodo, as well as to outstanding Chinese entrepreneurs such as Professor Xu Kaihua, Chairman of GEM. 

In the future, GEM will continue to cooperate with Merdeka to promote the construction of the entire industrial chain for the manufacturing of new energy materials from lateritic nickel ores, led by Merdeka and quickly completed, including lateritic nickel ore, new energy materials, ternary precursor materials and ternary cathode materials, to meet the needs of the global new energy market such as Europe and America, and to promote the electrification process in Indonesia and grow together with Indonesia.

Jiang Miao, Vice General Manager of GEM, Peng Yaguang, General Manager of QMB, Song Wei, Vice General Manager of GEM, and other officials from GEM Group attended the signing ceremony.

Supervisory Board Chairman, Mr. Winato Kartono, delivered a speech

Professor Xu Kaihua, Chairman of GEM, delivered a speech