JAKARTA - The death toll from a fire at an Indonesian nickel smelter has risen to 18 from 13 reported on Sunday, local police said on Tuesday, while operations remain suspended as authorities investigate the cause of the incident.
Fire broke out early on Sunday morning at a nickel smelter furnace on Sulawesi island partly owned by Indonesia Tsingshan Stainless Steel (ITSS), a unit of Tsingshan Holding Group of China.
Indonesia, the world’s biggest nickel producer, has banned unprocessed nickel ore exports while promoting major investments in smelting and processing, but several fatal accidents have hit the sector in recent years.
President Joko Widodo, while identifying nickel processing as a priority for economic development, has called for improved safety and enhanced monitoring of environmental standards.
Central Sulawesi police spokesperson Djoko Wienartono said on Tuesday that the victims included eight foreign workers, and that the police are still investigating the cause of the fire. China’s foreign ministry said four Chinese were among the initial 13 confirmed dead.
A spokesperson for the Indonesia Morowali Industrial Park where the plant is located, Dedy Kurniawan, said on Tuesday that operations would remain suspended during the investigation. The other 52 plants at the park are operating as usual, he added.
ITSS is 50%-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.
Officials from Indonesia’s industry ministry did not respond to requests for comment. Monday and Tuesday are public holidays in the country. A Tsingshan representative in China did not 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.