<![CDATA[The Indonesian nickel processing industry, concentrated in the Morowali (Central Sulawesi) and Obi Island (North Maluku) industrial parks, currently relies on captive coal-fired power plants (PLTU captive) to supply approximately 76% of its electricity demand. This dependency creates a structural barrier to decarbonization and exposes nickel exporters to forthcoming carbon border adjustment mechanisms (CBAM) in major destination markets. This study evaluates the techno-economic feasibility of integrating a 200 MWp ground-mounted photovoltaic (PV) plant coupled with an 80 MWh Battery Energy Storage System (BESS) as a partial substitute for captive coal generation in a representative nickel pyrometallurgical smelter (350,000 ton NPI/year, 132 MW captive load, 1,056 GWh/year electricity demand). The analysis combines solar resource assessment using long-term Global Horizontal Irradiation (GHI) data from the Global Solar Atlas (4.85–4.95 kWh/m²/day for the study locations), Levelized Cost of Energy (LCOE) calculation, and capital budgeting using NPV, IRR and Payback Period. Results show that the proposed configuration generates 279.0 GWh/year (substituting 26.4% of smelter consumption), with a total CAPEX of USD 197.76 million and LCOE of USD 0.0944/kWh (IDR 1,510/kWh). The avoided CO? emission reaches 237,155 tons/year. Although the project is not feasible under the current Indonesian carbon price (USD 2/ton, NPV negative), feasibility is achieved at carbon prices of USD 50/ton or above (NPV USD 19.84 million, IRR 11.33%) and becomes highly attractive at CBAM-equivalent USD 70/ton (NPV USD 61.34 million, IRR 14.01%, Payback Period 6 years 8 months). Sensitivity analysis identifies carbon price and PV CAPEX as the most influential variables. The study confirms that PV-BESS substitution is a strategically viable decarbonization pathway when supported by carbon pricing reform and ESG-aligned financing]]>
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