JAKARTA (June 4): Indonesia will impose a 7.5% export tax on shipments of copper concentrate, effective immediately, a finance ministry regulation showed on Tuesday, applicable to the two mining firms currently exempt from its ban on raw copper exports.

Indonesia has outlawed shipments of raw copper since June 2023, but authorities have permitted Freeport Indonesia and Amman Mineral Internasional to continue exporting until the end of 2024 to give them more time to complete construction of their copper smelters.

The last export permits for Freeport Indonesia and Amman were valid until May 31. For their January-May shipments, the government had imposed a tax ranging from 7.5% to 15%, depending on the progress of their smelters.

Freeport and Amman did not immediately respond to requests for comments on the tax rate and the status of their new export permits.

On Monday, an executive with Freeport Indonesia, majority owned by the Indonesian government but operated by US miner Freeport-McMoran, said the company was still waiting for an extension of its export permit that the government had promised.