JAKARTA, July 27 — Indonesia's Presidential Staff Office has called for cooperation between government agencies, law enforcement officials, and industry to resolve mineral shipment bottlenecks caused by a lack of clarity on the allowable rare earth content of exports.
Indonesia is a major minerals exporter, but only a minor producer of rare earths as a by-product, and no rules have yet been set governing the proportion of the material that can be included in shipments of other minerals.
Government officials have stated that exporters had faced shipment delays due to the absence of clear regulations on the matter.
"I received reports from several companies about disruptions to mineral exports," Presidential Chief of Staff Dudung Abdurachman said after chairing a coordination meeting on the subject between government agencies, law enforcement, officials and industry representatives today.
He added that exports containing rare earth elements as by-products had been hindered by a regulatory gap on allowable rare earth content.
The authorities, including the military, should not obstruct exports in the absence of rules governing rare earth element by-products.
The meeting was attended by representatives from key economic ministries, national research and innovation agency BRIN, the police, the Attorney-General's Office, sovereign wealth fund Danantara, state mining firms, and industry groups.
Under Indonesian rules, rare earth elements should be prioritised for domestic use, and President Prabowo Subianto has set up a special agency to oversee development of their utilisation.
