Indonesia Nickel Company Merdeka Battery Materials Plans $580 Million IPO

INITIAL PUBLIC OFFERING (IPO) - JAKARTA. Indonesian nickel company Merdeka Battery Materials, a unit of Merdeka Copper Gold plans to raise up to 8.745 trillion rupiah ($580.29 million) in an initial public offering in April, a prospectus published on Tuesday showed.

It will be the second nickel firm in Indonesia to go public this year after PT Trimegah Bangun Persada of the Harita conglomerate group, as the nickel-rich country's ramps up efforts to be a major player in the electric vehicle industry.

The company plans to sell 10.24% shares in the IPO at 780 to 795 rupiah a piece in the offering set for April 12-14. However, an additional 1.01% shares could be issued in case of oversubscription, which could put the value of the IPO at a total of 9.619 trillion rupiah, according to the prospectusreviewed by Reuters.

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The firm plans to use proceeds from the IPO to repay $300 million in outstanding loans, on capital expenditure and working capital.

The proceeds will also be used to develop the first phase of a high pressure acid leach (HPAL) plant with a capacity of 60,000 tonnes per year. The company signed an MoU regarding the plant with Ningbo Brunp Contemporary Amperex Co.Ltd earlier this month.