Recarbonization Through Decarbonization: Nickel Extraction and the Deepening of Fossil Fuel Dependence in Indonesia

A global green vision requires a low-carbon shift from fossil fuels to renewable energy. This transition, however, relies on significant material and energy inputs, exacerbating mineral extraction and dependence on fossil fuels. Adopting both a global political ecology and a critical international political economy perspective, this article examines the continuity of extractivist logic and practices, along with the increasing dependency on fossil fuels associated with the low-carbon transition. Utilizing a mixed-methods approach, including multisited fieldwork in nickel-producing provinces of Indonesia, this article investigates the extraction of green minerals within a resource-rich country that has a history of strong extractivism. We argue that in the context of a dominant extractivist regime, the global decarbonization agenda accelerates recarbonization and deepens fossil fuel dependency in mineral-rich countries, reinforcing social and environmental injustices associated with nickel extraction.