At least 13 workers lost their lives, and 38 others sustained injuries in an explosion at a nickel smelter furnace owned by Indonesia Tsingshan Stainless Steel (ITSS) on Sulawesi island, according to the owner of the industrial park housing the smelter. The tragedy unfolded during repairs to the furnace and plate installations at 5:30 a.m. on Sunday (2130 GMT on Saturday), resulting in the fatalities of eight Indonesian workers and five Chinese workers, as reported by Indonesia Morowali Industrial Park (IMIP), where the smelter is situated. The fire was successfully extinguished by 09:10 a.m. local time.
An IMIP spokesperson stated that preliminary investigations suggested the explosion might have occurred due to residual explosion-inducing liquid at the furnace's bottom. The repairing process triggered the explosion, leading to a cascade effect of subsequent explosions due to numerous oxygen cylinders utilized for welding and cutting furnace components during the repair.
IMIP, a nickel-focused industrial park jointly owned by China's Tsingshan and local partner Bintang Delapan Group, specializes in stainless steel and carbon steel production, with ITSS being one of its tenants.
The industrial park has pledged to collaborate with relevant entities to conduct a thorough investigation into the incident and cover all treatment costs for the victims. Indonesia, the world's leading nickel producer, has seen increased investments in its nickel sector since the government imposed a ban on unprocessed ore exports in 2020, emphasizing the importance of nickel in the country's resource-rich landscape.
The government aims to develop downstream nickel industries to attract substantial investments from electric vehicle and battery manufacturers. Despite these ambitions, Indonesia's nickel processing industry has witnessed several fatal accidents in recent years, prompting calls from President Joko Widodo for enhanced safety measures and environmental standards monitoring.
