Indonesia pushes back coal, palm oil insurance regulations to May

The Indonesian Trade Ministry has delayed the implementation of its controversial regulation that requires coal and palm oil exporters to obtain local insurance cover to May 31, 2019.

This latest postponement is the third for the regulation. It was first issued in October 2017, and later slated to come into effect in August 2018.The second delay pushed back the implementation date to February 01, 2019.

“Exporters and or buyers in export destination countries need time to adjust and comply with these policies,” a notice from the Trade Ministry said, which added that several export destination territories have similar regulations “specifically for procurement of government goods so that time is needed to negotiate.”

Several market sources have said that coal exporters were given a transition period of one month, which lapsed on February 28.

“There has been lots of confusion among exporters regarding the regulation and documentation,” Hendra Sinadia, executive director of Indonesian Coal Mining Association, told S&P Global Platts, adding that the regulation is in-force but the trial period has been extended to May 31.

Meanwhile, a Singapore-based trader lamented that some smaller Indonesian insurers are charging higher premiums.