Purbaya Exposes Under-Invoicing in Palm Oil and Coal Exports, Basis for PT DSI to Monitor Natural Resource Exports

JAKARTA, KOMPAS.com - The government has begun uncovering suspected price manipulation or under-invoicing in natural resource commodity exports, which are said to harm state revenue. The findings now form the basis for establishing PT Danantara Sumberdaya Indonesia (DSI), a state-owned enterprise tasked with managing strategic commodity exports.

Finance Minister Purbaya Yudhi Sadewa revealed that the government has obtained data on the top 10 palm oil (CPO) companies suspected of engaging in the practice through transaction shifting via foreign affiliated companies.

According to Purbaya, the case originated from President Prabowo Subianto’s directive during a cabinet meeting highlighting under-invoicing in natural resource exports. Following the report, he immediately ordered an investigation of import-export data through the Indonesia National Single Window (INSW).

‘There are records of CPO companies that manipulate prices. If asked, I will answer,’ Purbaya told journalists at the State Palace on Friday, 22 May 2026.

Purbaya stated that his ministry selected the top 10 CPO exporters in Indonesia and randomly sampled three shipments from each company. The results, he said, all showed a similar pattern.

‘I took the top 10, and they all did it. So it’s safe to say they all did it,’ he said.

The investigation found a pattern of exports from Indonesia to affiliated companies in Singapore at lower prices, before being resold to the United States at significantly higher prices.

‘The ship is the same, the volume is the same, but the price is different,’ he said.

Through data matching, the government can compare the export price from Indonesia with the import price in the destination country.

Purbaya noted that price discrepancies in some cases reached over 50% to 200%.

‘For example, exported from Indonesia at $2.6 million, imported there at $4.2 million – a 57% difference,’ Purbaya said, showing his findings.

‘There’s even more extreme: exported here at $1.44 million, imported there at $4 million – a 200% price change,’ he added.

According to Purbaya, the practice causes significant losses in tax and foreign exchange revenue for the state, as corporate profits are recorded overseas.

‘Income is low here, so I lose a lot,’ he said.