The operations at PT Virtue Dragon Nickel Industry’s (PT VDNI) nickel plant, one of Indonesia’s largest nickel smelters, have been hampered due to violent protests by hundreds of workers, according to local media reports citing a statement by the company.
Over 800 workers have been protesting for higher salaries and permanent employment for contractors. The protests turned violent on Monday when workers torched vehicles and buildings after the management failed to meet the protesters.
The activities at the plant were paralyzed because supporting equipment was damaged, while around 40 heavy equipment and operational vehicles caught fire amid the riots.
The nickel refining facility is located at Konawe on Sulawesi island. It became operational in February and has an input capacity of 800,000mt of ore to produce nickel pig iron with 10pc-12pc nickel content.
PT VDNI is a unit of China’s Jiangsu Delong Nickel Industry.