A Bloomberg report yesterday carried further news of smelter closures by independent smelters In Indonesia, citing the impact of low prices. The big post-Ramadan Eid al-Fitr holiday which began at the weekend is also an important factor not mentioned in the article.
Producers in Bangka-Belitung province closed about 24 of 28 smelters, the Indonesian Tin Mining Association estimates. “Most smelters have closed,” said Hidayat Arsani, its president. “The price just cannot cover the cost. Ideally, the price should be around $21,000 or $22,000 a ton. If this continues, we can’t work anymore.”
PT DS Jaya Abadi, one of the Indonesian smelters that curbed output, sent its 150 workers on leave until September, Sukito Gunawan, a director of the company, told Bloomberg. The producer in Pangkalpinang will review its options again that month. “We are surviving,” said Gunawan, who estimates monthly output this year averaged 300 tpm out of capacity of 800 tpm. Small-scale miners in Bangka-Belitung, who supply smelters with ore, have also stopped work. Ari Saputra, 22, said that his boss ordered a halt to mining at Batu Belubang beach more than a month ago, and he now earns a living breaking up the bamboo rafts used for dredging ore. The crews extract ore offshore and from riverbeds.
