Indonesia has long been known as a country rich in natural resources.\nNickel, tin, palm oil, coal, gold, coffee, rubber, and various strategic\ncommodities originate from Indonesian soil. Yet natural wealth does not\nautomatically make a nation strong. For years, Indonesia has often\nmerely been the place where commodities are mined or harvested. Prices,\nfinancing, trade, insurance, and most of the added value are determined\nand enjoyed abroad.<\/p>\n
For this reason, President Prabowo Subianto\u2019s plan to establish a\nmineral and strategic commodity exchange is one of the most intriguing\nideas in the 2027 State Budget speech at the Nusantara Building,\nParliament Complex, Senayan, Jakarta, on Friday (14\/8\/2026). The\ngovernment is targeting the exchange to begin operations on 1 January\n2027 under the supervision of the Financial Services Authority\n(OJK).<\/p>\n
The idea is simple but strategic: Indonesia is no longer content to\nbe merely a major producer. Indonesia must help shape prices, standards,\ndata, and the global commodity trading ecosystem.<\/p>\n
This step continues the government\u2019s policy direction in safeguarding\nexport revenue and foreign exchange. PT Danantara Sumber Daya Indonesia\nis said to have managed around US$14 billion in export proceeds,\nmonitored more than 6,500 transactions, and identified potential\nadditional foreign exchange of around US$5 billion in just over two\nmonths of operation.<\/p>\n
These figures show that economic leakage does not always occur in the\nform of budget corruption. Leakage can also emerge through\nunderinvoicing, price discrepancies, quality manipulation, transfer\npricing, and export proceeds that do not enter the domestic financial\nsystem optimally.<\/p>\n
The government\u2019s efforts to close these gaps deserve appreciation.\nEvery dollar of revenue saved can strengthen foreign exchange reserves,\nstabilise the rupiah, enlarge state revenue, and provide development\nfinancing.<\/p>\n
In this context, the role of Minister of Energy and Mineral Resources\nBahlil Lahadalia has become one of the key drivers of Indonesia\u2019s\nnatural resource sovereignty transformation. Under his coordination,\nmineral downstreaming policy, particularly for nickel, continues to be\naccelerated and has become a milestone in changing the national economic\nstructure.<\/p>\n
Indonesia is no longer merely exporting raw ore but has become one of\nthe key players in the global electric vehicle battery supply chain.\nExports of nickel derivative products, ferronickel, and stainless steel\nhave increased significantly in recent years, strengthening Indonesia\u2019s\nposition in the future energy industry.<\/p>\n
In addition, the energy and mineral resources sector has also\nrecorded important achievements in strengthening non-tax state revenue.\nThe contribution of the mineral and coal sector remains one of the\nlargest contributors to the state budget, while also demonstrating the\neffectiveness of tighter supervision and mining permit arrangements.<\/p>\n
In the energy sector, the acceleration of the energy transition is\nalso becoming visible. The development of new and renewable energy such\nas geothermal, solar, and bioenergy continues to be promoted. Indonesia\nis currently among the countries with the largest geothermal potential\nin the world, and its utilisation continues to increase gradually.<\/p>\n
Village electrification programmes and reducing dependence on fossil\nenergy in remote areas are also part of the ministry\u2019s broader agenda.\nThis not only affects energy efficiency but also promotes more equitable\naccess to electricity.<\/p>\n
Efforts to strengthen mining governance have also become an important\nfocus. Cracking down on illegal mining permits, digitalising licensing,\nand supervising production are steps that improve the extractive\nindustry ecosystem, which has long been vulnerable to leakage.<\/p>\n
However, the commodity exchange must not become merely a new\nbuilding, a trading board, or an administrative obligation. The exchange\nmust have liquidity, credible prices, a transparent database, quality\nstandards, storage facilities, transaction settlement systems, hedging\ninstruments, and the trust of both producers and international\nbuyers.<\/p>\n
The government needs to ensure that small players are not pushed\naside. Coffee, rubber, and cocoa farmers, fishermen, small-scale legal\nminers, and regional processing businesses must gain access to price\ninformation and markets. If the exchange can only be used by large\ncompanies, price sovereignty will not automatically translate into\npublic welfare.<\/p>\n
For this reason, the exchange needs to be linked to warehouse receipt\nsystems, production cooperatives, banking, insurance, testing\nlaboratories, and digital platforms. Farmers with quality commodities\nshould be able to store their products, obtain financing, see prices\ndirectly, and choose a more profitable time to sell.<\/p>\n
Economic sovereignty is also visible in downstreaming policy. The\ngovernment has initiated a number of projects to process coal into\ndimethyl ether, copper and gold, industrial salt, alumina into\naluminium, and waste into energy. Downstreaming is necessary so that\nIndonesia does not continue to export jobs and added value along with\nits raw materials.<\/p>\n
Yet downstreaming must not stop at building smelters. Its measure of\nsuccess must include how much local content is used, the technology\nmastered, the Indonesian workers who are upskilled, the downstream\nindustries that are born, and the share of added value that remains in\nthe country.<\/p>\n
The plan to optimise state-owned enterprise assets carries a similar\nspirit. The government has stated that it has closed 290 unproductive\nSOEs and entities and is targeting a leaner number of SOEs. Assets such\nas land, buildings, networks, airports, and underutilised areas will be\nopened for cooperation with the private sector through competitive and\naccountable processes.<\/p>\n
This direction makes sense. The state does not have to operate all\neconomic activities directly. The state\u2019s role is to maintain strategic\nownership, ensure the community<\/p>", "url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/energy-sovereignty-as-indonesias-new-economic-path-1786780271", "image": "" }, "sponsor": "Okusi Associates", "sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com" }