Last month, Eramet canceled plans to build a $2.6 billion nickel-cobalt refinery with Germany's BASF SE in Weda Bay, with the latter citing growing availability of battery grade nickel. That project would have been the only HPAL facility in Indonesia with Western shareholders, potentially making it eligible for generous subsidies under the US Inflation Reduction Act. Chinese companies have been able to build the plants far quicker and cheaper than their Western counterparts, but have also faced concerns over how they manage the tailings with severe contamination risks.