State-Owned Enterprise Becomes Indonesia's Sole Exporter of Palm Oil and Coal

Jakarta — The government has officially appointed a new state-owned enterprise, PT Danantara Sumber Daya Indonesia, as the sole exporter for Indonesia’s strategic commodities, including palm oil and coal. Coordinating Minister for Economic Affairs Airlangga Hartarto said the firm was formed by the Minister of Investment/Head of BKPM and Rosan Roeslani, CEO of Danantara Indonesia. ‘The Investment Minister/Head of BKPM has formed the entity PT Danantara Sumber Daya Indonesia. Further details will be explained,’ Airlangga said at a press conference after presenting the Macroeconomic Framework and the Kerangka Ekonomi Makro dan Pokok-Pokok Kebijakan Fiskal RAPBN 2027 at the Parliament Complex in Jakarta, on Wednesday 20 May. Rosan said the establishment of the company is intended to improve governance of export of natural resources, particularly regarding under-invoicing and transfer pricing that have long been viewed as detrimental to the state. ‘Over the years, World Bank data show a high level of under-invoicing and transfer pricing,’ he said. Prabowo previously announced the government would issue a government regulation (PP) on the governance of strategic export resources. Through that rule, exports of strategic commodities must be conducted through a state-owned export company designated by the government. According to Prabowo, the policy aims to strengthen export supervision and curb practices of underpayment, transfer pricing, and revenue leakage from exports. “He said the policy would optimise tax revenue and state revenue from our resource management. He noted that state revenue from the natural resources sector has lagged behind those of other nations due to weak governance of export commodities.”We do not want our revenue to be the lowest because we are not bold enough to manage our own assets.” In the initial phase, the government has set three strategic commodities that must pass through PT Danantara Sumber Daya Indonesia: coal, palm oil, and ferro-alloys. The scheme will be expanded to all strategic natural resources gradually. The government is also preparing two phases of implementation. In the first phase, export transactions will still be conducted directly by exporters with overseas buyers. However, all export documentation will be processed through PT Danantara Sumber Daya Indonesia.