https://www.miningweekly.com

We did it, you should too: Ore-ban talk gathers pace in Asia

22nd August 2016

By: Bloomberg

  

Font size: - +

SINGAPORE – The Philippines should follow Indonesia’s lead and prohibit the export of raw metal ores, according to National Development Planning Minister Bambang Brodjonegoro, who said he was a big supporter of the curbs imposed by his country and results so far have been a success.

The restrictions have helped to spur the local manufacture of greater-value products, the former finance minister said in an interview in Singapore on Monday. Although some revenue was lost in the near term, the policy means there’ll be much a better result in future, he said.

Indonesia halted the export of ores from 2014, roiling the nickel market, and some Philippine lawmakers are now weighing a similar move as President Rodrigo Duterte conducts an audit of the industry to ensure its compliance with environmental standards. While Indonesia’s curbs opened the door to the development of the Philippine industry as its miners stepped into the gap, Brodjonegoro said policy makers there would do well to emulate Indonesia.

'VERY DANGEROUS'
“I would recommend that because history has told us that dependency on natural resources could be very dangerous,” Brodjonegoro said. “Of course there might be short-term pain for the long-term gain.”

President Duterte and Environment Secretary Gina Lopez are spearheading the crackdown on mining, ordering operators to comply with rules or shutter, and the audit is due to be completed this month. The country replaced Indonesia as the top supplier of nickel ore used in China’s stainless-steel industry, and accounts for about 20% of global mined output.

Nickel has climbed 17% to $10 300 a metric ton on the London Metal Exchange this year as predictions for a shift to global deficits and the Philippine crackdown have lifted prices. In the first half of 2014 as Indonesia’s ore-trade ban went into effect, nickel surged 37%.

'SERIOUSLY CONSIDER'
The Philippine lower house will fast-track hearings on a bill to amend the Mining Act, including a measure to ban ore exports, according to Congressman Carlos Isagani Zarate. Zarate, who heads the House Natural Resources Committee, said last week that the proposal sounds right.

Congressman Ping Amante has refiled a bill in the House of Representatives seeking to ban the export of unprocessed ores and criminalising the practice by imposing a jail term on violators. Amante was among congressmen who filed an earlier bill that foundered on a lack of support.

Still, the country may face an uphill battle. Lower-quality ores and less-abundant coal resources than in Indonesia mean building nickel-processing plants in the Philippines would be a more costly and less attractive investment, Vivienne Lloyd, an analyst at Macquarie Group, has said.

“Every developed country in the world never has dependency on commodities, their economies are always supported by manufacturing or real sectors,” Brodjonegoro said. “This is a big lesson not only for the Philippines but also for Indonesia. We are both developing countries and we both have natural resources, and this is a wise decision.”

Edited by Bloomberg

Comments

Showroom

Booyco Electronics
Booyco Electronics

Booyco Electronics, South African pioneer of Proximity Detection Systems, offers safety solutions for underground and surface mining, quarrying,...

VISIT SHOWROOM 
Weir Minerals Africa and Middle East
Weir Minerals Africa and Middle East

Weir Minerals Europe, Middle East and Africa is a global supplier of excellent minerals solutions, including pumps, valves, hydrocyclones,...

VISIT SHOWROOM 

Latest Multimedia

sponsored by

Hyphen, Eva mine, ferrochrome price make headlines
Hyphen, Eva mine, ferrochrome price make headlines
27th March 2024
Resources Watch
Resources Watch
27th March 2024

Option 1 (equivalent of R125 a month):

Receive a weekly copy of Creamer Media's Engineering News & Mining Weekly magazine
(print copy for those in South Africa and e-magazine for those outside of South Africa)
Receive daily email newsletters
Access to full search results
Access archive of magazine back copies
Access to Projects in Progress
Access to ONE Research Report of your choice in PDF format

Option 2 (equivalent of R375 a month):

All benefits from Option 1
PLUS
Access to Creamer Media's Research Channel Africa for ALL Research Reports, in PDF format, on various industrial and mining sectors including Electricity; Water; Energy Transition; Hydrogen; Roads, Rail and Ports; Coal; Gold; Platinum; Battery Metals; etc.

Already a subscriber?

Forgotten your password?

MAGAZINE & ONLINE

SUBSCRIBE

RESEARCH CHANNEL AFRICA

SUBSCRIBE

CORPORATE PACKAGES

CLICK FOR A QUOTATION







sq:0.154 0.194s - 112pq - 2rq
Subscribe Now