On February 26, 2026, local media reported that a fire occurred at PT Huafei Nickel Cobalt, located within the Indonesia Weda Bay Industrial Park (IWIP) in Halmahera Tengah, Maluku Utara Province, Indonesia. Videos widely circulated on social media show that the fire likely originated at the plant's lime storage facility. The incident took place on the evening of Wednesday, February 25, 2026, and it remains unclear whether there were any casualties.
PT Huafei Nickel Cobalt operates a high-pressure acid leach (HPAL) hydrometallurgical smelter with a planned capacity of 120,000 tonnes of nickel metal per year, supported by a 5 million tonnes per year sulphuric acid production facility. Its main product is MHP (Mixed Hydroxide Precipitate), a key raw material in the new energy vehicle battery supply chain. Throughout 2025, the Huafei project exceeded its production target, producing 147,100 tonnes (in Ni. content) of MHP. Lime is an important neutralizing agent and auxiliary material for tailings treatment in hydrometallurgical processing.
Written by Cora Ji, jiruyan@mysteel.com
