Indonesia doubles down on coal to power its aluminum expansion

BANGKOK (AP) — Resource-rich Indonesia is expanding its production of aluminum as the Iran war disrupts supplies, relying on its abundant coal reserves to power new smelters that run contrary to efforts to curb carbon emissions that cause climate change.

Prices have risen due to fuel shortfalls and attacks on infrastructure that have slowed production in the Middle East of the lightweight, silverish metal used in everything from kitchen foil and power lines to smartphones and cars.

In working to raise its limited manufacturing capacity, Indonesia has a strong ally in China, which makes 60% of the world's aluminum but is keen to reduce pollution and emissions from smelters on its own shores. Chinese companies have invested in about three-quarters of the planned Indonesian projects.

Here's what to know about Indonesia's ambitious aluminum plans:

The Middle East usually makes about 9% of the world’s aluminum, but output from the region is expected to drop 44% this year from 2025, according to Fastmarkets, a commodities information agency.

Energy shortfalls drove Emirates Global Aluminium to back out of deals and Qatar Aluminium Ltd. to slash production, while Iranian strikes damaged Aluminium Bahrain's facilities.

A metric ton of aluminum traded for between $3,150 and $3,250 before the Iran war. But the conflict drove up that price to as high as $3,780 per metric ton in June. It’s now trading near $3,400 a metric ton.

The war has magnified the potential for other regions, like Southeast Asia, to replace Middle East production, said Andy Farida of Fastmarkets.

“When that supply is so unsure, end users look for alternatives,” he said. “The war has really accelerated this transformation and put Indonesia on the map.”

Aluminum is one of the most used metals in the world and its production is highly energy intensive. The process starts with the mining of bauxite ore, which is refined into alumina and then smelted into aluminum.

By the end of the decade, Indonesia wants to quadruple its alumina output to 32.5 million metric tons and ramp up aluminum production from around 1 million metric tons in 2025 to 14.5 million metric tons by 2030, according to the Centre for Research on Energy and Clean Air.

The Finland-registered nonprofit is tracking 32 prospective off-grid coal plants, built by private companies to exclusively power aluminum smelters. These are known as “captive coal” facilities.

There is limited public data on the emissions from these types of plants, according to Syahdiva Moezbar, with CREA in Jakarta. “This captive coal boom all over Indonesia is essentially not tracked. That is why it’s very concerning,” he said.

Such plans are contrary to Indonesia’s promises to cut its use of coal, the most heavily polluting major fossil fuel and a significant source of planet-warming emissions.

They also threaten to cause more damage at a time when the expansion of Indonesia's globally important nickel industry is sacrificing local environments for industrialization.

The aluminum industry accounts for about 2% of annual global greenhouse gas emissions, equaling about 1.1 billion tons of carbon dioxide equivalent each year, according to the World Economic Forum. That’s more than the total annual emissions of most countries.

If all Indonesia’s planned projects begin operating by 2030, CREA estimates that the country's own bauxite reserves will be depleted in less than 12 years.

China has invested between $5.5 billion and $6 billion in Indonesia's aluminum industry, according to CREA, which forecasts this to surge to $30 billion by 2030.

After Beijing set a domestic cap on aluminum production to curb overcapacity in 2017, Chinese companies expanded into other countries that have fewer restrictions, like Indonesia, according to Putra Adhiguna, with the Jakarta-based Energy Shift Institute.

Indonesia categorizes nickel and aluminum as “transition minerals” since they can be used in so-called clean technologies, such as electric vehicle batteries and solar panels.

That's left a loophole for companies to maintain that these nickel and aluminum investments, which are fueled by coal, are in keeping with climate change commitments, despite the fact that Chinese President Xi Jinping pledged to stop funding overseas coal plants in 2021.

It is unclear what final products Indonesia-origin metals, like aluminum and nickel, will end up in, said Binbin Mariana with the environmental advocacy group Market Forces.

“It is a huge loophole, an elephant can go through the loophole,” she said. “You say it’s a green product, but it is powered by coal... That’s definitely greenwashing.”

Aluminum smelters could run on cleaner energy like hydropower, but this would take longer and cost more.

Indonesia is prioritizing speed to capitalize on the window of opportunity that the Iran war has created, said Adhiguna, with the Energy Shift Institute. “The speed factor is really what is causing the havoc,” he said.

“This is really running against the grain, against the spirit, of the commitment to the climate movement," he said.

Building more captive coal for aluminum will worsen the toxic haze that often blankets Southeast Asian cities, like Jakarta, according to Muhammad Al Amin, with the Indonesian Forum for Environment.

The environmental advocacy nonprofit, also known as WALHI, has campaigned against increasing the use of coal on the Indonesian island of Sulawesi, which is a nickel production hub.

“If companies want to expand captive coal to aluminum, I think it is very bad news and a very bad development,” he said. “We have seen it, we have felt it — how communities suffer from the captive coal impact.”

Associated Press writer Edna Tarigan in Jakarta contributed to this report.

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Tug boats pull barges loaded with coal on Mahakam River in Samarinda, East Kalimantan, Indonesia, on Aug. 19, 2026. (AP Photo/Ahmad Mulia Panjaitan)

A barge is fully loaded with coal on the Mahakam River in Samarinda, East Kalimantan, Indonesia, on Aug. 19, 2026. (AP Photo/Ahmad Mulia Panjaitan)

A truck operates at a coal mine near Samarinda, East Kalimantan, Indonesia, on Aug. 19, 2026. (AP Photo/Ahmad Mulia Panjaitan)

A tug boat pulls a barge loaded with coal on the Mahakam River in Samarinda, East Kalimantan, Indonesia, on Aug. 19, 2026. (AP Photo/Ahmad Mulia Panjaitan)

A tug boat pulls a barge loaded with coal on Mahakam River in Samarinda, East Kalimantan, Indonesia, on Aug. 19, 2026. (AP Photo/Ahmad Mulia Panjaitan)

Aaron Donald's decision to come off the retirement couch and get back on the field after a two-year absence may be unusual but it's far from unprecedented.

Donald joins a list of athletes who had called it quits after putting together Hall of Fame-caliber careers only to get the itch and decide to come back to play.

“Do I feel like I can play at a high level? Yes,” Donald said Sunday after announcing his decision to return to the Los Angeles Rams and continue a career that already featured three AP Defensive Player of the Year awards and eight first-team All-Pro selections. “Do I feel like I can still be myself? One hundred percent, and if I didn’t feel like that, I wouldn’t be here.”

Whether this comeback is more like Michael Jordan's first in the NBA when he won titles in his first three full seasons back, or his second, when he couldn't make the playoffs in two seasons with Washington, remains to be seen.

But few have made the attempt as a 35-year-old in the physical shape that Donald is in, providing hope that this one could be a success.

Other greats like Magic Johnson and Mario Lemieux made comebacks after early retirements for medical reasons. Johnson played 32 games for the Los Angeles Lakers in 1996 after a four-year absence following his announcement that he had contracted HIV.

Lemieux sat out three seasons battling Hodgkin's lymphoma before returning in 2000 to play five more seasons for the Pittsburgh Penguins, adding 77 goals and 152 assists to his already impressive totals.

Here are some other Hall of Famers in the North American team sports who came out of retirement with varying success:

The Minister of Defense was also a multitime AP Defensive Player of the Year when he stepped away following the 1998 season after winning his second DPOY award that season to give him 192 1/2 sacks, eight All-Pro selections and a certain ticket to Canton.

After sitting out the 1999 season, White joined the Carolina Panthers in 2000. While he played in all 16 games, the results weren't great. He had a career-low 5 1/2 sacks and played out the string with a team that finished 7-9 and missed the postseason.

Prime Time established himself as one of the NFL's greatest cornerbacks in his first 12 seasons with Atlanta, San Francisco, Dallas and Washington. He helped both the 49ers and Cowboys win a Super Bowl, was the Defensive Player of the Year in 1994 with San Francisco, and his 48 interceptions helped him garner six first-team All-Pro selections.

Sanders retired after the 2000 season and first tried to make a comeback late in 2002 but the Chargers blocked his possible move to the Raiders with a waiver claim that kept him on the retired list.

Sanders eventually came back two years later in 2004 at age 37. He played two more seasons with Baltimore, with five interceptions in 25 games.

Jordan first stepped away at the top of his game in 1993 after winning his third straight NBA title with the Chicago Bulls. It wasn't a full retirement as he opted to give baseball a try, playing in the minor leagues for the Chicago White Sox organization.

He came back late in the 1994-95 season and scored 55 points in his fifth game back but fell short in the playoffs with the Bulls losing in the second round to Orlando. Chicago was nearly unbeatable the next three seasons, setting a then-record with 72 wins in 1995-96 with Jordan winning another title and his fourth MVP. The Bulls won it all the next two seasons for a second three-peat with Jordan once again retiring after winning MVP in 1998 in what was billed as “The Last Dance.”

Jordan became a part-owner of the Washington Wizards in 2000 and decided to come back and play in the 2001-02 season at age 38. Jordan still had something in the tank as he averaged at least 20 points per game in both seasons with Washington but it wasn't enough.

Cousy was one of the NBA's first superstars as the dazzling point guard on the dynastic Boston Celtics before retiring in 1963 after winning his fifth straight NBA title and his 12th All-NBA selection. His retirement ceremony in 1963 was nicknamed the Boston Tear Party for the emotional toll it took on the city.

Cousy sat out the next six seasons before getting hired as head coach of the Cincinnati Royals in 1969. Late in his first season he decided to come out of retirement and play as well at the age of 41 as the second player to appear in an NBA game in his 40s.

The comeback didn't last long. Cousy played seven games at the end of the season, making just one basket and recording 10 assists in his brief time before going back to being a full-time coach.

Sandberg made the surprise decision to retire from the Chicago Cubs midway through the 1994 season at age 34 as he was struggling with a career-low .238 average and just five homers in 57 games.

After sitting out the next season, Sandberg returned to the Cubs in 1996 and played two more seasons. He hit 25 homers in his first season back to lead all second basemen. He added 12 more homers the next season for a last-place team before hanging it up for good.

Mr. Hockey retired at age 43 with 786 goals in 1,687 games with the Detroit Red Wings and was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame the following year. But in 1973 he decided to return to the ice at age 45 to play with his sons Mark and Marty for Houston of the WHA.

He spent six seasons in the upstart league before finishing his career back in the NHL with the Hartford Whalers. He finished his final season at age 52, having recorded 15 goals and 26 assists in 80 games to extend his own records for goals, points and games played.

Plante had won six Stanley Cups with Montreal and was one of the most important goaltenders in hockey history when he retired in 1965 at age 36. Plante was the first goalie to wear a mask regularly and was one of the first to play the puck outside the crease in a practice that is now commonplace.

After sitting out three seasons, Plante returned in 1968-69 to play for the St. Louis Blues in their second season as an expansion team. He helped them reach the Stanley Cup Final in his first season before losing to his old Canadiens team and played four more seasons after that in the NHL, finishing with Boston in 1973-74. He then played 31 games in 1974-75 for Edmonton in the WHA before retiring for good before the next season.

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FILE - Gordie Howe, right, of the Houston Aeros, comes in to head Tom Earl of the New England Whalers off rom the puck during the first period of the World Hockey Association playoff game in Hartford, Conn., May 11, 1976. (AP Photo/Bob Child, File)

FILE - Chicago Cubs Ryne Sandberg watches his home run ball against the Los Angeles Dodgers in the second inning, Aug. 2, 1997, in Chicago. (AP Photo/Michael Conroy, File)

FILE - Carolina Panthers' Reggie White (92) sacks San Francisco 49ers quarterback Jeff Garcia (5) in the fourth quarter of the Panthers' win in Charlotte, N.C., Oct. 22, 2000. (AP Photo/Chuck Burton, File)

FILE - Baltimore Ravens cornerback Deion Sanders smiles during the third quarter of a football game against the Green Bay Packers, Dec. 19, 2005, in Baltimore. (AP Photo/Gail Burton, File)

FILE - Washington Wizards' Michael Jordan gets control of the ball with pressure from Indiana Pacers' Al Harrington in the fourth quarter of play, Jan. 4, 2003, in Washington. (AP PHoto/Lawrence Jackson, File)