Indonesia can emerge as Korea’s energy, minerals hedge: commerce chamber head

President Lee Jae Myung holds hands with Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto before their summit at Cheong Wa Dae in Seoul, Wednesday. Courtesy of Cheong Wa Dae

Anindya Novyan Bakrie, chairman of the Indonesian Chamber of Commerce and Industry, is positioning Korea-Indonesia ties as a strategic hedge for Korea’s energy and critical minerals security amid mounting geopolitical risks and energy market turmoil.

Anindya Novyan Bakrie, chairman of the Indonesian Chamber of Commerce and Industry (Kadin), poses during a luncheon between President Lee Jae Myung and Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto at Cheong Wa Dae in Seoul, Wednesday. Courtesy of Kadin

Bakrie, who joined Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto’s visit to Seoul last week, noted the two countries’ summit has underscored the need to move beyond ad hoc deals toward long-term industrial partnerships.

“From a business point of view, the real value of this summit is that the agenda is practical … It covers trade, investment, defense, artificial intelligence (AI), infrastructure, shipbuilding, nuclear energy and energy transition,” he said in a written interview with The Korea Times. “That gives the private sector a clearer signal on where the partnership is heading.”

Against the backdrop of the Iran war and renewed jitters over Middle East energy and resource supply chains, the chairman pointed to gas and broader upstream energy cooperation as the front line of Korea’s supply security.

“In the near term, Indonesia’s most immediate contribution lies in gas and broader upstream energy cooperation,” he said. He cited Indonesia’s offshore Binaiya and Serpang blocks, estimated to hold 15 trillion cubic feet of gas, where SK Earthon’s consortium was granted exploration rights, as the kind of project Korea needs more of.

He stressed that the strategic value of the relationship goes well beyond hydrocarbons. “The key resources are not only fuel. They are also critical minerals and intermediate materials,” he said.

“My view is that the right model is not spot buying, but a long-term partnership: upstream cooperation, processing, logistics and a cleaner downstream industry. That is how both countries reduce dependence on any single route, market or geopolitical flashpoint.”

The chairman assessed the summit between the leaders of the two countries last Wednesday as part of a deeper shift in the relationship, pointing to continuity and an already substantial economic base.

He noted that the two countries have been engaging in ministerial and working-level talks to expand investment and resolve business issues since the two presidents met at Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation meetings in Korea last October.

“The biggest synergy is clear enough: Korea brings technology, industrial discipline and capital; Indonesia brings scale, resources and a strong downstreaming agenda,” Bakrie said. “If this summit helps remove execution bottlenecks, the gains should show up in electric vehicles (EVs), batteries, steel, petrochemicals, clean energy and the digital industry.”

However, despite a substantial existing base with bilateral trade exceeding $20 billion and thousands of Korean firms operating in Indonesia, Bakrie suggested the crucial part now is execution, making fuller use of the Indonesia-Korea Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (IK-CEPA).

He said the priority is to turn agreed frameworks into real projects in areas such as semiconductors, EVs, technology, infrastructure and manufacturing, and called for faster approval of cooperation proposals, noting that only two out of 25 proposals under IK-CEPA have been approved as of 2026.

“What we would like to see now is more production, more supplier development, more skills transfer and more use of Indonesia as a manufacturing base for ASEAN, not only as a sales market,” he said.

Bakrie also urged both sides to push toward a “balanced and more industrial” trade structure, centered on co‑production in refining, components, engineering, manufacturing and services, while highlighting AI as a key enabler for that shift.

“Korea brings serious strength in semiconductors, digital infrastructure and factory automation; Indonesia brings scale, demand, and a large set of real-economy use cases,” he said. “Korea’s technological strength can work with that scale to create a new growth engine. Indonesia should be one of the main platforms for that cooperation.”