(Yicai Global) Sept. 20 -- Huayou Cobalt, a major Chinese supplier of battery raw materials, is teaming up with three energy firms both at home and in Indonesia to build the largest installed natural gas power station in the Southeast Asian nation.

Unit Huayou International Mining penned memorandums of understanding with SPIC Guangxi Electric Power, which is a branch of State Power Investment in southwestern Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region as well as Indonesian electricity and gas providers Indonesia Power and PT Perusahaan Gas Negara at the China-ASEAN Expo on Sept. 16, the Hong Kong-based subsidiary said yesterday.

The plant will be the main source of power at Pomara Industrial Park in Sulawesi in the southeast of the country, supporting the green development of the park and empowering the sustainable development of the new energy lithium battery sector, it said. It will also be Indonesia's first self-owned industrial power station using natural gas to generate electricity.

The deal marks a significant step in Huayou Cobalt’s sustainable development strategy, and also marks the company’s determination to meet international standards on carbon neutrality, it said.

Based in the Tongxiang Economic Development Zone in southeastern Zhejiang province, Huayou Cobalt is the country’s largest supplier of cobalt products. It is also engaged in the manufacturing of electric car battery raw materials, the deep processing of cobalt new materials and the mining and smelting of cobalt and copper.

The firm’s net profit jumped 53.6 percent in the first half from the same period last year to CNY2.2 billion (USD322 million) while revenue more than doubled to CNY31 billion (USD4.4 billion).

Editor: Kim Taylor