An already operating nickel smelter in Sulawesi is shown in 2019.Hariandi Hafid/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty ImagesMerdeka Battery Materials, backed by Indonesian billionaires Garibaldi Thohir and Edwin Soeryadjaya, has signed an agreement to build a $1.8 billion nickel smelter in Sulawesi, doubling down on its nickel investments amid the electric vehicle (EV) boom.The high-pressure acid leach (HPAL) smelter, located at the Morowali Industrial Park in Central Sulawesi, will be developed and operated by an Merdeka Battery Materials (MBMA) affiliate, Sulawesi Nickel Cobalt. Construction started in January and operations are set to begin within 18 months, according to an announcement released this week.Expanding our downstream processing capabilities is essential to our strategy for maximizing the value of our extensive nickel resources, Teddy Oetomo, president director of MBMA, said in the statement.Once complete, the smelter will produce 90,000 tonnes of mixed hydroxide precipitate, a crucial material for making EV batteries. The plant is located next to an existing smelter run by Huayue Nickel Cobalt, a joint venture led by Chinese billionaire Chen Xuehuas Zhejiang Huayou Cobalt.The new plant will source its raw material, laterite nickel ore, from MBMAs Sulawesi Cahaya Mineral unit, which operates one of the worlds largest nickel mines. That mine holds about 13.8 million tonnes of nickel and one million tonnes of cobalt.The project will be funded primarily through loans, with Indonesian and overseas banks committing $1.4 billion in financing.MBMAs parent company, Merdeka Copper Gold, counts billionaires Thohir and Soeryadjaya as major stakeholders. Thohir holds a 7.4% stake and Soeryadjayas Saratoga Investama Sedaya owns 19.4%. Thohir was ranked 17th on Indonesias 50 Richest list released last December with a net worth of $3.8 billion, while Soeryadjaya ranked 33rd with $1.6 billion. Thohir also leads Alamtri Resources Indonesia, one of the worlds top coal exporters, while Soeryadjayas Saratoga has stakes in around 20 companies, including Alamtri.