Deli Tama Indonesia's CPO exports suspended

Deli Tama Indonesia's CPO exports suspended

JAKARTA (JP): Minister of Industry and Trade Yusuf Kalla has
suspended crude palm oil exports from PT Deli Tama Indonesia's
storage tanks at the North Sumatra port of Belawan.

The suspension is part of the measures introduced after 19,000
metric tons of CPO originating from Deli Tama tanks were held up
at Rotterdam Port last month due to diesel oil contamination,
Kalla told a news conference in Medan on Saturday.

He made a one-day visit to North Sumatra to gather firsthand
information about the tanks, which are owned by state PTPTN III
plantation company, became contaminated.

Kalla also inspected several other CPO and cooking oil plants
in Medan, including those of the Musim Mas Group, the largest
cooking oil producer in the province.

He said the government was greatly concerned by the case
because of the potential effect on Indonesian CPO exports to
Europe, one of the largest markets for the commodity.

Indonesia, the world's second largest CPO producer, exports
between 2.5 million tons to three million tons a year, with the
Netherlands accounting for about 300,000 tons.

He said measures were being taken to prevent a repeat of the
contamination, including the installation of a gas
chromatographer at Sucofindo's testing laboratory in Medan and
the requiring of sample testings of CPO at several important
points in the commodity's transportation from mills to storage
tanks at Belawan Port.

The office of the minister of state enterprises fired Deli
Tama Indonesia's director Megananda last week and replaced him
with Panusunan Lubis.

Chairman of the Indonesian CPO Producers Association Derom
Bangun, said investigations were under way to ascertain how the
contamination occurred and determine who was responsible.

Traders in Medan have demanded that Djoharuddin, the president
of PTPN III, be investigated thoroughly because mismanagement was
likely a major factor in the contamination.