Jakarta (ANTARA) - Foreign Affairs Minister Retno Marsudi invited Norway to invest in developing the electric vehicle (EV) battery industry, as the Indonesian government attempts to build an EV ecosystem in the country.

Marsudi met Norwegian Foreign Affairs Minister Anniken Huitfeldt in Oslo, on Tuesday (June 12, 2023), where she was also invited to attend the Oslo Forum.

"Foreign Minister Marsudi held a bilateral meeting with the Norwegian Foreign Affairs Minister Anniken Huitfeldt in Oslo (June 12) to discuss forestry cooperation and energy transition and encourage Norwegian investment in the battery industry in Indonesia," according to the Indonesian Foreign Affairs Ministry via Twitter.

She also paid a courtesy call to Prime Minister of Norway, Jonas Gahr Store, on Wednesday (June 13, 2023) on the sidelines of the Oslo Forum as well as held a meeting with Minister of Climate and Environment of Norway, Espen Barth Eide.

Indonesia is committed to developing the downstream EV battery industry and building an electric vehicle ecosystem in the country. President Joko Widodo underscored the importance of industrial downstreaming in a bid to make Indonesia a developed country.

To expedite growth of the electric vehicle ecosystem, the government has issued an incentive policy by offering a purchase discount of Rp7 million (around $469) per unit for 200 thousand new electric motorbikes and 35,900 electric cars. The incentive began to be offered since March 20, 2023.

Norway leads the world in EV adoption. Since the 1990s, the Norwegian government has been taking steps to accelerate the process of EV transition, and it was one of the first countries to create tax incentives for EV purchases.

The number of EV purchases in Norway is also relatively high. In December 2022, over 80 percent of new cars purchased in Norway were electric, according to McKinsey & Company's data.

To date, more than 22 thousand public chargers have been installed to service over half a million EVs plying on the country’s roadways.

In addition to this, EVs in Norway accounted for 79 percent of new car registrations in 2022, according to the World Economic Forum's data. (INE)
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Reporter: Shofi Ayudiana
Editor: Atman Ahdiat
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