NUSA DUA, Indonesia—Indonesia plans to pitch business opportunities, including data centers, to Elon Musk, although he previously declined a proposal to build an electric-vehicle battery factory in the country, a government adviser said.
Musk, the world’s richest man and an adviser to President-elect Donald Trump, struck a $5 billion deal in 2022 for his car company, Tesla, to purchase nickel from Indonesia. The country holds the world’s largest reserves of nickel, a key component in electric-vehicle batteries.
Luhut Binsar Pandjaitan, chairman of Indonesia’s National Economic Council, said he suggested the battery-factory idea to Musk, but was turned down due to Indonesia’s distance from Tesla’s car factories.
“We offered this, but at the time, they had their own idea that they’re going to do it in the U.S.,” Luhut said in an interview. “But I understand also because it’s very close to the factory” for Tesla vehicles, he said.
Tesla didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment.
Luhut said he would continue pitching business opportunities in the coming months, including the possibility of building data centers for xAI, Musk’s artificial-intelligence company.
In recent years, Indonesia, the world’s fourth most-populous nation, has strengthened its ties with Musk through Luhut, a senior leader in the previous administration and now an adviser to Indonesia’s new president, Prabowo Subianto.
“We are friends,” Luhut said of his relationship with Musk.
Luhut said he last spoke to Musk about two weeks ago in a 10-minute Zoom call, during which he congratulated Musk on helping Trump win the election and on Musk’s new role leading the Department of Government Efficiency, an initiative aimed at cutting federal spending and regulations.
“Welcome to the big headache,” Luhut recalled joking. He added that he told Musk that government advisers, unlike corporate chief chiefs, “cannot make a decision alone.”
Luhut said he plans to meet Musk in the U.S. after Trump’s inauguration, around February, to discuss potential xAI investments in Indonesia data centers. He noted that he had briefly raised the idea with Musk when the billionaire visited Bali in May to inaugurate Starlink, Musk’s satellite-based internet service, in Indonesia.
Indonesia’s previous president had also pitched Musk, who runs the space company SpaceX, on the idea of launching rockets from Indonesia instead of the U.S.
Indonesian officials have pointed out that equatorial launch sites are generally more fuel-efficient.
Luhut said Musk declined the proposal, saying that SpaceX already has strong infrastructure in the U.S. and moving it to Indonesia would require time and money. Luhut said the proposal remains open should Musk change his mind.
Write to Stu Woo at Stu.Woo@wsj.com