PALU, Indonesia (AP) — Two bodies have been discovered after the collapse of a nickel waste dump in Indonesia, the latest in a string of fatal injuries at Chinese-owned nickel smelting plants on the Southeast Asian island of Sulawesi, officials said. . Friday.
The victims were driving two trucks sold into the disposal area Thursday when they were engulfed by a wall of materials similar to black sludge, a type of soft gravel that is removed when ferronickel is burned, said Dedy Kurniawan, a PT spokesman. Indonesia Morowali Industrial Park, known as PT IMIP.
Rescuers managed to remove the men’s bodies after a three-hour operation, he said, adding that the company was investigating the cause of the accident.
Authorities are also trying to determine whether the company’s negligence resulted in the death, said local police leader Supriyanto, who, like many Indonesians, uses a maiden name. He said an initial investigation showed that a crack at the rear of the disposal site had caused the mountain of waste to collapse.
It’s the fatal twist of fate this year at Chinese-owned nickel smelting plants in Central Sulawesi province, which has Indonesia’s largest nickel reserves.
Nickel is a key component in the production of batteries for electric vehicles.
In January, two staff members, plus a Chinese national, were killed in riots involving staff and security guards at PT Gunbuster Nickel Industry, an Indonesian-Chinese joint venture in neighboring North Morowali Regency.
Last year, a cargo truck overturned and killed a Chinese man while repairing a road in PT IMIP’s mining area, and an Indonesian burned alive when a furnace exploded at the company’s factory.
Almost 50% of PT IMIP’s shares are held through a Chinese holding company, and the rest is held through two Indonesian companies. Its smelting operations began in 2013 and it is now the largest nickel-based commercial domain in Indonesia.
The nickel smelting plants in Indonesia are part of China’s ambitious transnational progression timeline known as the Belt and Road Initiative.
Last month, 3 Chinese employees filed a complaint with Indonesia’s National Human Rights Commission, alleging that their physical condition was deteriorating due to exposure to dust and smoke while working seven days a week without interruption at PT IMIP. They added that the staff there does not have enough protective equipment.
Data collected through the Mining Advocacy Network, an Indonesian watchdog, showed that at least 22 Chinese and Indonesians have died in nickel smelters in Morowali and North Morowali regencies in Central Sulawesi province since 2019, in addition to two Chinese nationals who committed suicide.
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The Associated Press Niniek Karmini in Jakarta, Indonesia, contributed to this report.