Indonesia’s alumina import to drop as domestic industry readies to scale production

Alumina import by Indonesia is set witness a drop in 2017 as domestic production of the mineral is increasing at a steady state. With the country’s state-owned aluminium producer PT Indonesia Asahan Aluminium (Inalum) readying to increase its metal output to 500,000 tonnes a year by 2020 from its current production level of 260,000 tonnes, the demand for alumina is projected to rise in the long term. However, Indonesia is focussed on reducing its import dependence for a few industrial commodities, alumina being one of them, to foster growth of the domestic industry.

Indonesia imported 72308.5 tonnes of alumina in 2016, up from 37511 tonnes a year ago. In 2017, the total alumina import volume is projected to decrease to 59441 tonnes.

The value of alumina import by Indonesia is also estimated to drop year-over-year. A glance through the three-yearly import data would reveal that the South East Asian country imported alumina worth US$20 million in 2016, up 25 per cent from the previous year. In 2015, total alumina import value stood at US$16 million.

In 2017, the value of alumina import by Indonesia is estimated to decline totalling at US$15 million. The prospective countries from where Indonesia would be procuring its alumina include France, Germany, Hong Kong, India, Japan, South Korea, and Malaysia.

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It is to be noted that PT Indonesia Asahan Aluminium (Inalum) is planning to increase its aluminium output to one million tonne per year by 2025 as demand for the metal is projected to more than double from current levels in nine years. Quite expectedly this would boost the consumption of alumina. However, with Indonesian refiners like PT Indonesia Chemical Alumina scaling their production the import is expected to drop over the long term.