Govt Initiates Discussion on Low Grade Mineral Smelter Moratorium Plan

The Indonesian government is set to ban the construction of smelters processing low-grade nickel ores. Investment Ministry's mineral and coal downstreaming director Hasyim Daeng Barang revealed that the directorate had been talking with other ministries regarding the plan. Apparently, the industry is running out of low-grade nickel resources.

According to Hasyim, there are too many Rotary Kiln Electric Furnace (RKEF) smelter projects in Indonesia, while the resources are only enough for the next 9-10 years.

"That is why we are trying to create a moratorium. It's very likely that in the future, we will no longer issue any permits for the construction of the RKEF smelter. We will direct the investment to MHP [mixed hydroxide precipitate] smelter construction," he elaborated.

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