Olein exports continue despite lack of supply

Olein exports continue despite lack of supply

JAKARTA (JP): Exports of olein, the main raw material of
cooking oil, from Jakarta continues despite the shortage of
cooking oil supply in the capital, a source said.

A Medan-based producer said Saturday that he suspected that
the exported olein originated from North Sumatra, after it was
shipped to Jakarta to help the government's effort to stabilize
cooking oil prices.

He said the government asked crude palm oil (CPO) producers in
North Sumatra to sell some of their products to Jakarta instead
of to overseas in a bid to help stabilize cooking oil prices.

"We have no problem selling part of our CPO to Java but the
government should assure that our products are not exported," he
told The Jakarta Post.

A source said that 11,000 tons of olein had been allegedly
exported by PT Darmex of Duta Palma Nusantara Group from Tanjung
Priok to Malaysia in four shipments over the past two months.

The company last exported 3,300 tons of olein from Tanjung
Priok to Malaysia on June 23 on a Deli Tua III barge, according
to data obtained by the source.

The government has appointed state trading company PT Dharma
Niaga to distribute cooking oil to stabilize market prices in
Jakarta which rose to above Rp 6,500 over the past several weeks,
compared to the floor price of Rp 3,500 set by the government.

The government-sponsored Joint Marketing Office (KPB), which
handles the marketing of farm products produced by state-owned
plantation companies, has been asked by the government to supply
Dharma Niaga with enough stock for that purpose.

However, cooking oil prices remained high last week. This was
because it did not receive enough cooking oil from KPB, Dharma
Niaga's director Sonda Lawa said.

He said the company had received only 4,500 tons of cooking
oil from KPB since its appointment as market price stabilizer
recently.

KPB's director Asep A Tojib said it would only increase supply
if Dharma Niaga gave it an estimated daily demand for Jakarta.

Earlier, an anonymous official at KPB said the effort to
stabilize cooking oil prices on the domestic market would only be
successful if the private sector helped out by reducing their
exports.

He said many private producers sold their CPO products
overseas despite the 40 percent export tax.

The official named several big producers, including PT Darmex,
PD Kemajuan, Inti Boga Sejahtera of the Salim Group, SMART of the
Sinar Mas Group, Asean Agro and Hasil Kesatuan, as companies
which still preferred to sell their produce overseas.

He said the international price of CPO was currently much
higher than domestic prices, a fact that prompted many companies
to export their produce despite the high export tax. (jsk)