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.