Morowali Regency

Morowali Regency Kabupaten Morowali
Regency
Morowali Industrial Park
Coat of arms
Motto(s):  Tepe Asa Maroso (Pamona) (United We Are Firm)
Location within Central Sulawesi
Morowali Regency Location in Sulawesi and Indonesia Morowali Regency Morowali Regency (Indonesia)
Coordinates: 2.818536°S 121.860786°E / -2.818536; 121.860786
Country	Indonesia
Province	Central Sulawesi
Capital	Bungku
Government
• Regent	Anwar Hafid
• Vice Regent	Marunduh
Area (as reduced by the separation of North Morowali)
• Total	5,472.00 km2 (2,112.75 sq mi)
Population  (mid 2023 estimate)
• Total	170,450
• Density	31/km2 (81/sq mi)
Time zone	UTC+8 (ICST)
Area code	(+62) 464/465
Website	morowalikab.go.id

Morowali Regency is a regency of Central Sulawesi Province of Indonesia. It covers an area of 5,472 km² and the districts now within the regency had a combined population of 102,228 at the 2010 Census; the regency population at the 2020 Census was 161,727; the official estimate as at mid 2023 was 170,450 (comprising 93,793 males and 76,657 females). The administrative centre is at the town of Bungku. The Regency includes the far-flung Menui Islands (Kepulauan Menui), lying to the southwest of the rest of the province.

History

On 4 October 1999, Morowali Regency was created out of a portion of Poso Regency. At that time it was composed of the southeastern fourteen districts from the Poso Regency.

On 12 April 2013 this Morowali Regency was in turn divided into two Regencies; the seven northernmost districts were split off to form a new North Morowali Regency (Morowali Utara) covering nearly two-thirds of the area of the then Morowali Regency, while the seven southernmost districts were retained as the residual Morowali Regency, although two additional districts were created by the division of existing ones.

Economy

Main article: Economy of Sulawesi

Morowali Regency contains rich deposits of high-quality nickel, a vital material needed to manufacture lithium batteries. Starting in the 2010s and into the 2020s, the thriving nickel industry in Morowali has resulted in a large increase in the region's GDP (300% increase between 2013 and 2019), but the expansion of the extraction industry has also caused environmental degradation. From 2014 to 2020, over US$6.5 billion in foreign direct investment has flowed into the construction of nickel smelters and other downstream processing activities in Morowali Regency. Morowali is the site of an industrial park, the Morowali Industrial Park, specifically earmarked for refining activities. In Morowali, GDP more than tripled in just six years from Rp 6.9 trillion (US$480 million) in 2013 to Rp 24.3 trillion (US$1.7 billion) in 2019, almost all of it driven by investment in downstream nickel processing. As of 2021, the largest foreign investors were American, Chinese, and Japanese companies, while the government of Indonesia is attempting to build a domestic battery industry.

The growth of this facility has resulted in the rapid expansion in the population, particularly in Bahodopi District where the mine is situated. The increased workforce migrating into the area has been largely male, resulting in a substantively high gender ratio in the regency.

Administrative districts

The Morowali Regency was divided (following the creation of the separate North Morowali Regency in 2013) into seven districts (kecamatan), but two further districts (Bungku Pesisir and Bungku Timur) were later created. These are all tabulated below with their areas and their populations at the 2010 Census and 2020 Census, together with the official estimates as at mid 2022. The table also includes the location of the district headquarters, the numbers of administrative villages in each district (totaling 126 rural desa and 7 urban kelurahan), and its postal codes.

Kode Wilayah	Name of District (kecamatan)	Area in km2	Pop'n Census 2010	Pop'n Census 2020	Pop'n Estimate mid 2022	Admin centre	No. of villages	Post codes
72.06.07	Menui Kepulauan (a) (Menui Islands)	223.63	12,064	13,232	13,946	Ulunambo	24 (b)	94975
72.06.06	Bungku Selatan (c) (South Bungku)	403.90	17,273	13,914	14,664	Kaleroang	26	94979
72.06.10	Bahodopi	1,080.98	6,594	37,322	39,336	Bahodopi	12	94974
72.06.15	Bungku Pesisir (Coastal Bungku)	867.29	(d)	6,625	6,982	Lafeu	10	94981
72.06.05	Bungku Tengah (Central Bungku)	725.57	27,774	29,302	30,882	Marsaoleh	19 (e)	94973
72.06.18	Bungku Timur (East Bungku)	387.23	(d)	12,061	12,712	Kolono	10	94980
72.06.08	Bungku Barat (West Bungku)	758.93	10,093	14,061	14,819	Wosu	10	94977
72.06.09	Bumi Raya	504.77	11,488	14,524	15,307	Bahonsuai	13	94976
72.06.12	Wita Ponda	519.70	16,942	20,686	21,802	Laantula Jaya	9	94978
	Totals	5,472.00	102,228	161,727	170,450		133

Notes: (a) partly on Sulawesi island (and comprising the most southeastern part of the province), but also including 42 islands mainly to the southeast of the rest of the province. The largest are Menui Island (Pulau Menui) and the two Padui Islands.
(b) including one kelurahan (Ulunambo). (c) includes a group of islands off the northeast coast of Bungku Selatan, of which the largest are Umbele (Pulau Umbele Gunung), Paku, Waru-Waru and Pado-Pado.
(d) the 2010 populations of Bungku Pesisir District and Bungku Timur District are included in the figures for the Districts from which they were cut out in 2013.
(e) including 6 kelurahan (Bungi, Lamberea, Marsaole, Matano, Mendui and Tofoiso).