My solution to this issue was to use the node:18.19-bullseye-slim base image.

The Angular application is not dependent on any low level system tools or resources. So this works perfectly for now without having to fiddle with the build server.

Side note:

In cases when I'd need low level tools or resources from the actual server, for example if I want to build for SSR or run automated tests using Cypress or some image processing using sharp for example, then I'd consider installing the specific tools required for example python, make, gcc, or g++ using a command along the line: apt-get install -y python3 make g++

Or find a way to get the build to work with the full node:18.19.1 image - that would require fiddling with the build server though.

ps: This SO issue is still open to other views. Thanks