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Indonesia's Jan-Oct nickel ore imports rise to 9.3 mln metric tons

Indonesia's imports of nickel ore rose to 9.3 million metric lots in the first ten months of 2024, more than 50 times the corresponding figure of 161,917 tons for the year earlier period, the data bureau stated on Friday.

The world's biggest nickel producer has purchased record volumes of the ore from the Philippines because April as smelter demand increased and Jakarta postponed the problem of mining quotas with heavy rains harming mining activity, Reuters reported.

Alexander Barus, president at nickel-focused Indonesia Morowali Industrial Park, stated the imports were 'a. reasonable company decision' made by owners and management of. domestic smelters.

Domestic ore supply is lower than need that reached 200. million loads each year for all requirements. Maybe because of. the hold-up in nickel RKAB issuance, Barus said, referring to the. quotas.

Imports of nickel ore throughout January to October mostly came. from the Philippines and China, for an overall worth of $406. million, up from $7.1 million a year previously.

Indonesia changed the way it released mining quotas this year,. which impacted nearly all miners in the resource-rich nation. In June, authorities said they had issued 240 million metric. tons of output quotas for the next 3 years.

Nevertheless, ore scarcities seemed to have actually continued later into. the year. Leading nickel manufacturer China's Tsingshan has actually cut its. Indonesia ferronickel output since of ore scarcity, 2. sources with knowledge of the matter told Reuters in September.

Indonesian authorities have protected the nickel ore quota,. saying volumes authorized were more than enough for smelters.

(source: Reuters)