Ministry issues new export permits for nickel, bauxite

Petromindo|Thomas

The Ministry of Energy and Mineral Resources has issued key recommendation letter for two mining firms to export low grade nickel ores and washed bauxite.

Director of Mineral Development and Management at the ministry Bambang Susigit said late last week that export permit was given to PT Itamara Nusantara in Morowali Utara, Central Sulawesi, to export low grade nickel ores with quota of 118,827.22 tons.

Itamara is a subsidiary of IDX-listed PT Central Omega Resources Tbk, while another subsidiary PT Mulia Pacific Resources had on August 24 also obtained export permit of low grade nickel ores with quota of 700,000 tons.

Another export recommendation letter was given to PT Laman Mining in Ketapang, West Kalimantan Province, with export quota of 2.85 million tons.

The export recommendation letter is necessary for the companies to be able to obtain export permit from the Ministry of Trade.

Bambang said that the two mining firms were given the export recommendation letter because they have built the required domestic smelters. He did not provide further details. ?The recommendation (letters) have been issued on September 14,? he said.

The government has previously issued permit for five miners to export low grade nickel ores and for two miners to export washed bauxite. However, exports of the two commodities remain low. As per end August, export low grade nickel ores only accounted for 17.64 percent of the total export quota of 8.1 million tons, while export of washed bauxite only reached 8.48 percent of total export quota of 3.25 million tons. (*)