Indonesian President Joko Widodo on December 21 confirmed an export ban for bauxite – a main ore source of aluminum from June next year to encourage domestic processing.

Indonesia is one of the world's largest bauxite suppliers with China being its major customer. (Photo: Bloomberg)

According to the US Geological Survey, Indonesia is the world's sixth-largest producer of bauxite and has the fifth biggest reserves. The country is the third largest bauxite supplier to China, behind Guinea and Australia.

The timing of the ban is consistent with Indonesia's current Mining Law, which stipulates that the export of other unprocessed minerals such as copper will also be stopped. However, President Joko Widodo did not specify the timing of the export ban on other raw minerals.

Previously, Indonesia banned the export of coal and palm oil for a short time, causing weeks of uncertainty in markets that consume these commodities.

Joko said the bauxite ban aims to replicate Indonesia’s success in nickel processing development after halting the export of its raw form in January 2020, which helped draw foreign investors, mostly from China, to build local smelters.

According to Indonesia’s customs data, China imported 17.8 million tonnes of bauxite from Indonesia in 2021 and 17.98 million tonnes in the first 11 months of this year, accounting for about 15.6% of total imports.

Source: VNA