Illegal mining threatens international tin market

Illegal mining threatens international tin market

Thirty thousand freelance tin miners have taken over a mineral-rich island in Indonesia and are threatening an environmental crisis while seriously damaging the commercial tin market, the world's largest tin producer warned last Thursday.

PT Timah told an industry meeting in London that appeals to the Jakarta authorities to put a halt to the operations had fallen on deaf ears.

The price of tin has plunged on world markets from US$4,900 per ton to below $3,680 amid reports of illegal output in Southeast Asia.

Industry suspicions were confirmed by PT Timah officials who were in Britain for London Metals Exchange week.

They estimate that Bangka island's unlicensed miners could be producing nearly one third of all new tin flooding on to the market.

Anthony Turner, who represents the world's second largest tin mining group Minsur of Peru, said: "Major producers are deeply concerned about these illegal activities which are causing extreme environmental damage while having a severely depressing effect on tin prices."

Paul Atherley, managing director of another precious metals group, Murchison United, said: "We operate at the Renason Bell tin mine in Tasmania to the highest standards of environmental care and health and safety. Actions in Indonesia are making it very hard to reinvest for the future."

The industry believes that problems on Bangka stem from the devolution of power from Jakarta to the regions and regulations imposed by central government being ignored by local authorities. --Guardian