A nickel-processing facility in Indonesia linked to Chinese metals giant Tsingshan Holding Group has halted operations as police investigate an explosion that left 18 workers dead.
Ten Indonesian workers and eight Chinese workers were killed in the accident.
PT Indonesia Tsingshan Stainless Steel, or ITSS, stopped operations after the blast early Sunday at a furnace in the Indonesia Morowali Industrial Park, a representative of the park said. ITSS is under investigation, said Morowali police chief Suprianto, who uses a single name.
ITSS is 50 per cent owned by Tsingshan Holding Group, which spearheaded the expansion of Indonesia’s nickel industry in the past decade, building plants that process ore and use it to make stainless steel or battery-grade chemicals. The incident was at a blast furnace which produces a semi-processed form of nickel.
The park’s representative said other businesses at the site – which hosts 52 companies – were operating normally. The latest number of deaths was confirmed by police chief Suprianto on Tuesday.
Officials from Indonesia’s industry ministry did not respond to requests for comment. Monday and Tuesday are public holidays in Indonesia. A Tsingshan representative in China didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment.
The incident occurred around 5:30am local time on Sunday morning at a furnace that was under maintenance, according to a statement released on the same day by the park’s management. Residue leaked out of the furnace and came into contact with flammable items, causing a fire.
This was the third deadly accident this year at Chinese-owned nickel smelting plants in Central Sulawesi province, which has the largest nickel reserves in Indonesia.
Two dump truck operators were killed when they were engulfed by a wall of black sludge-like material following the collapse of a nickel waste disposal site in April.
In January, two workers, including a Chinese national, were killed in riots that involved workers and security guards at a Indonesia-China joint venture in North Morowali regency.
Additional reporting by Kyodo