MANILA (Reuters) -China and the United States are among numerous countries that have expressed interest in tying up with the Philippines to exploit mining opportunities, particularly in nickel, the environment minister said on Friday.

The southeast Asian nation is looking to follow neighbouring Indonesia, which lured major investment in processing plants for its huge deposits of nickel ore, after banning unprocessed exports in 2020.

The Philippines should boost its capacity for processing nickel, a key component in production of EV batteries, the minister, Maria Antonia Yulo-Loyzaga, said. “Unfortunately, the country currently has only two nickel processing plants, which highlights the need for specific measures,” added Loyzaga, whose ministry also oversees mining.

Both plants are partly owned by the Philippines’ biggest ore producer, Nickel Asia Corp.

Australia, Britain, Canada and European Union nations had shown interest in the Philippines, the minister added.

Processing its nickel ore output would be the ideal scenario for the Philippines, said Economic Planning Secretary Arsenio Balisacan, and the time was right as the country seeks to add value to its production of minerals.

“This energy transition issue has made our critical minerals not just an economic value proposition, but also has implications for energy security, national security,” Balisacan told reporters on the sidelines of a mining forum.

With its large untapped mineral deposits, the Philippines is studying possible incentives for mining companies, he added.

The latest government figures show that the Philippines, a major supplier of nickel ore to top metals consumer China, produced 35.14 million dry metric tons last year, an increase of 19% on the year.

(Reporting by Mikhail Flores and Karen Lema; Editing by Martin Petty and Clarence Fernandez)