Malaysia not to raise tin output in the next two years

Malaysia not to raise tin output in the next two years

Ian C. Sayson, Bloomberg/Manila

Malaysia will not increase its tin production in the next two years even as demand for the metal is expected to grow at least 3 percent a year, the head of the Southeast Asian nation's mining association said.

"This year's production will be the same as last year and it will probably be at the same level in the next two years," Mohamadd Ajib Anuar, president of the Malaysian Chamber of Mines, said in an interview in Manila.

Indonesia, the world's largest tin producer last year, plans to keep its official annual production of at between 70,000 metric tons to 80,000 tons this year, compared with 76,000 tons in 2004, to help stem a slide in the price of the metal. Supply from illegal miners helped push prices of tin down by 30 percent in the past year.

Anuar said global demand for tin, which is used for food cans and electronic equipment, will grow three to four percent a year "over the long term," driven by the electronics and chemical industries, particularly in China.

"Any increase in supply to meet additional demand will probably mainly come from Indonesia," said Anuar, who is also chief executive at Malaysia Smelting Corp.

Anuar also said that Malaysia Smelting will spend $3 million to explore for tin in Bangka, Indonesia. He said the company is still doing a "preliminary assessment" of Myanmar's tin potential that an exploration activities may not happen in the next two years.