RI needs 50 smelters: Minister
Thursday, July 19 2012 - 11:52 AM WIB
Industry Minister Muhammad Sulaiman Hidayat said on Thursday that Indonesia ideally needed between 30 and 50 smelters to process the raw mining products domestically.
"The ideal number is about 30 to 50 smelters, and they should be spread across the country," Minister Hidayat told Petromindo.com at the State Palace.
He however expressed some concerns about the energy supply for the processing plants. "PLN (state electricity firm) must work hard to guarantee the availability of electricity in order to attract investors to build the smelters," he said.
The government has banned holders of Mining Business Permit (IUP) from exporting 65 unprocessed mining products unless they submit a plan to build a smelter and pay a 20-percent export tax. The regulation is aimed at controlling exports of the raw commodities which have increased quite significantly in recent years.
Editing by Adianto P. Simamora