A GERMAN chemical giant has pulled out of a multibillion-dollar mining project in Indonesia following pressure from campaigners highlighting the plight of uncontacted people in the area.

BASF, one of the largest chemical producing companies in the world, was part of the $2.6 billion (£2bn) project on the Indonesian island of Halmahera alongside French mining firm Eramet.

The project, known as Sonic Bay, intended to refine nickel and cobalt mined at Weda Bay Nickel (WBN), the world’s biggest nickel mine, which campaigners have accused of destroying the rainforest homes of hundreds of indigenous people.