Ford will invest Rp67.5bn ($4.5bn) with partners in Indonesia to advance sustainable nickel production, as the US automaker uses partnerships to directly source raw materials for its electric vehicle (EV) production.

The announcement on March 30 is part of an agreement reached last year with nickel miner Vale Indonesia and China’s Zhejiang Huayou Cobalt. The Pomala Block HPAL Project, located in the southwest of Sulawesi, will produce up to 120 kilotons of contained nickel per year, in the form of mixed hydroxide precipitate. It is expected to start commercial operations in 2026.

This comes barely a week after Ford reported that its EV unit will make a $3bn loss this year, following several major capital pledges including a $3.5bn plant in Michigan and a memorandum of understanding to build a battery plant in Turkey.

Campari Group plans second Wild Turkey bourbon distillery

Italian beverage company Campari Group plans to invest $161m to construct a second distillery at its Wild Turkey campus in Anderson County, adding to its presence in the US state of Kentucky.

The planned distillery, set out in a March 30 release by Kentucky’s governor Andy Beshar, will be designed to produce five million additional proof gallons of its Wild Turkey bourbon per year. The project is expected to break ground by October 2023 and be completed by the end of July 2025.

The investment, which will create an additional 31 jobs, adds to more than $330m in operations and expansion commitments made by Campari Group since acquiring the Wild Turkey distillery. 

EBRD provides €140m for Antalya airport 

The European Bank of Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) is extending a €140m loan for an investment to expand and make green improvements at the international airport in Turkey’s tourism capital Antalya.

The financing, announced in a March 30 statement, is expected to enable the construction of a new solar power plant, the expansion of passenger terminals and the creation of additional service facilities. 

In 2022, more than 30 million passengers used Antalya airport, making it a crucial entry point for the wider region’s tourism industry. The airport has also committed to more inclusive procurement to increase the share of women within its contractor workforce.

Since 2009, the EBRD has invested nearly €17bn in various private sectors of Turkey’s economy.

And finally, the UK government announced today (March 31) that it has joined the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership. The trade deal, which took 21 months to negotiate, is the largest agreed since the UK decided to leave the EU.