Government clarifies rare earth export rules, allows delayed mineral shipments to resume

By Calvin Purba

The government has clarified that export restrictions on rare earth elements (REE) apply only when REE are exported as the primary commodity, allowing exports of mineral products containing rare earths as incidental by products to resume.

Head of the Presidential Staff Office (KSP) Dudung Abdurachman said the clarification followed coordination among the Coordinating Ministry for Economic Affairs and other government agencies and will serve as a transitional guideline while revisions to the relevant regulations are being finalized.

"The export ban applies to rare earth elements as the main product. It does not automatically apply to rare earth content found as incidental minerals in primary mining products and their downstream products," Dudung told a press conference on Monday.

To strengthen legal certainty during the transition, the government is also seeking a legal opinion from the Attorney General's Office.

Following coordination on July 31, Dudung said state owned surveyor PT Sucofindo had been authorized to issue 85 survey reports that had previously been withheld because the products were suspected of containing rare earth by products.

Most of the pending survey reports cover exports of alumina, copper cathodes and nickel downstream products.

Dudung added that mining products containing naturally occurring radioactive material (NORM) will also remain eligible for export, provided they comply with applicable testing, safety and monitoring requirements.

The clarification is expected to ease export disruptions that had left more than 100 vessels awaiting clearance due to differing interpretations among surveyors, Customs and Excise, and law enforcement agencies.

The uncertainty had prompted concerns from the Indonesia Nickel Industry Forum (FINI), which urged the government to introduce rare earth regulations gradually to avoid disrupting nickel exports. The association said trace amounts of rare earth elements in processed mineral products should not automatically alter their export status and recommended that future regulations be based on the primary product's Harmonized System (HS) code, mineral composition, recoverability and commodity specific threshold levels.  

Editing by Alexander Ginting