Govt won?t impose quotas on tin exports: Official

The government said that it would not limit tin exports through quoata system because the regulations on export commodities were aimed to ensure the quality of the products, Media Indonesia reported Monday.

"There is no quota (on tin exports)," Minister of Energy and Mineral Resources Purnomo Yusgiantoro told Reuters late on Saturday.

Meanwhile, Aang Kanaan Adikusumah, director of industrial and mining exports at the Ministry of Trade, also said ?There is no quota on tin, may be there was a talk about it. But so far, it is not there.?

As per the export regulation, an exporter must be in the registered exporters? list (ET-Timah). So far, only two companies ?-state tin miner PT Timah Tbk and PT Belitin -- that hold a license to export tin, Aang said

?We haven?t received any new applications. So far we have received 10 applications,? he added.

Earlier, Ministry of Energy and Mineral Resources?s director of development of geothermal, coal and mineral businesses Mangantar S. Marpaung said that government will impose an export quota system in order to safeguard the tin?s price above US$12,000 per ton. (*)