Indonesia's Rare Earth Metals Banned from Export Under New Regulation

The Ministry of Energy and Mineral Resources (ESDM) is beginning to unravel mineral export issues affected by the presence of rare earth elements (REE) as associated minerals. The government is currently coordinating across ministries and agencies to resolve export obstacles recently experienced by several mineral commodities.

Deputy Minister of ESDM Yuliot Tanjung stated that the government, in principle, encourages rare earth elements to be processed domestically to support the development of national industry, including high-tech industries. “For REE, they must now be processed domestically and also utilised for industrial development and domestic high-tech mastery. There is already an institution assigned to this, the Indonesian Mineral Board,” Yuliot said in Jakarta, as quoted on Wednesday (29/7/2026).

According to him, the government will also review the development of REE processing and value addition within the country. However, regarding specific regulations on REE trade governance, Yuliot said the government is still reviewing the legal framework.

As is known, a number of nickel pig iron (NPI) shipments from Indonesia have recently been reported to have encountered obstacles because the cargo had to undergo additional testing for rare earth element content.

So, what are the rules? In the Minister of Trade Regulation (Permendag) Number 6 of 2026 concerning the Fourth Amendment to Permendag Number 22 of 2023 concerning Goods Prohibited for Export, the government has included rare earth metals in the list of goods prohibited for export.

This provision is listed in the Mining Sector Appendix at point 257, which mentions rare earth metals with a total of 17 elements contained in the soil with a purity level below 99%. In the appendix, the government details the 17 rare earth elements in question, namely:

1. Scandium with a grade below 99%

2. Yttrium with a grade below 99%

3. Lanthanum with a grade below 99%

4. Cerium with a grade below 99%

5. Praseodymium with a grade below 99%

6. Neodymium with a grade below 99%

7. Promethium with a grade below 99%

8. Samarium with a grade below 99%

9. Europium with a grade below 99%

10. Gadolinium with a grade below 99%

11. Terbium with a grade below 99%

12. Dysprosium with a grade below 99%

13. Holmium with a grade below 99%

14. Erbium with a grade below 99%

15. Thulium with a grade below 99%

16. Ytterbium with a grade below 99%

17. Lutetium with a grade below 99%

In addition, the government has also included tellurium dioxide (TeO2) with a grade below 98% TeO2 in the list of goods prohibited for export. This policy is part of the government’s efforts to encourage mineral downstreaming.