The Indonesia Tin Forum hosted by ITRI in Pankalpinang, Bangka, during December attracted more than 100 delegates to hear about and discuss issues currently facing the Indonesian tin sector, such as changing export regulations, and international market concern over environmental and social sustainability.
Peter Kettle, manager of market studies at ITRI, set the scene by explaining the continuing importance of Indonesian tin production to the international market, as well as the current situation with the ICDX exchange, and this was supplemented by a presentation by Budi Prastowo, assistant head of the Bangka Belitung Provincial Bureau of Statistics (BPS), that provided information on the trends in the economic contributions of a variety of sectors in the province, including tin mining and smelting. From the downstream end of the tin supply chain, Carolyn Duran, materials EHS manager of Intel Inc., highlighted the growing requirements for transparency in supply chains of end product manufacturers. Duran also en- couraged all smelters to become involved in the conflict-free smelter audit program before mid-2014.
Participants were in general agreement that tin is an important resource that should be exploited for the maximum benefit of the people of Bangka Belitung and Indonesia, but that the current situation of limited transparency of source and control on production must be addressed. The importance of effective monitoring of traceability to mine source was frequently mentioned to link tin exports to particular concession areas and encourage mining companies to carry out the responsibilities defined by local laws.
For a region that has been mining tin for more than 200 years, one key issue of concern appeared to be the limited extent of land reclamation observed at the moment, whether this was a result of repeated re-mining of the same areas, or to the lack of contributions to the cost of reclamation from unconventional small scale miners. The discussions brought forward several ideas in this regard including a suggestion that exporters should pay Rph 200,000 ($16.52) per metric ton into a new reclamation fund possibly organized through ITRI and the ICDX.
| Precious Metals | ($/oz) | Base Metals | ($/mt) | Minor Metals | ($/mt) | Exchange Rates | (U.S.$ Equivalent) | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Gold | $1,223.00 | Aluminum | $1,755.50 | Molybdenum | $21,500 | Euro (€) | 1.3717 | |
| Silver | $20.01 | Copper | $7,439.50 | Cobalt | $30,000 | U.K. (£) | 1.6529 | |
| Platinum | $1,409.00 | Lead | $2,212.00 | Canada ($) | 0.9401 | |||
| Palladium | $730.00 | Nickel | $13,905.00 | Iron Ore ($/dmt) | Australia ($) | 0.8902 | ||
| Rhodium | $1,025.00 | Tin | $22,490.00 | Fe CFR China | $134.50 | South Africa (Rand) | 0.0946 | |
| Ruthenium | $57.00 | Zinc | $2,082.00 | China (¥) | 0.1639 |
Gold and silver prices provided by KITCO Bullion dealers (http://www.kitco.com). Platinum group metals prices provided by Johnson Matthey (http://www.platinum.matthey.com). Non-ferrous base and minor metal prices provided by London Metal Exchange (http://www.lme.co.uk). Iron ore prices provided by Platts Iron Ore Index. Currency exchange rates were provided by the GoCurrency.com.
