Australian mining billionaire Andrew Forrest has called on China to demand higher environmental standards from its global supply chain, particularly its companies conducting nickel processing in Indonesia, an industry he accused of “complete environmental irresponsibility”.

In an interview with the Financial Times, Forrest — the chair and largest shareholder of Fortescue Metals Group — said electric vehicle manufacturers should be wary of Indonesian nickel, which he said was being extracted at immense cost to the environment.

“China will need to enforce its own environmental standards on its global supply chains,” Forrest said during a visit to Bo’ao, southern China. Every buyer of nickel “needs to be really careful if they’re buying from that [Indonesian] source”, he said.