The country is set to impose a ban on exports of minerals in their raw form to pave the way for the development of local industries, production of higher-value exports, and the creation of more jobs for Filipinos, based on a bill approved on third and final reading by the Senate recently.
Senate President Chiz Escudero introduced the provision amending Senate Bill No. 2826, which prohibits the exports of raw minerals, and if signed into law, will take effect after five years.
Under the proposal, the Philippines will ban the export of locally-extracted raw minerals–similar to what Indonesia put in place in 2020 when it stopped the exportation of nickel ore and the bauxite in 2022.
“This will result in added value for our minerals-related exports, provide a much-needed boost to our economy and generate employment for our people.”
“What we are looking at is to shift our policy from merely exporting raw minerals that will be utilized by other countries to produce higher value products, to developing our own processing capabilities. This will result in added value for our minerals-related exports, provide a much-needed boost to our economy and generate employment for our people,” Escudero said.
The veteran legislator explained that the five-year period in the measure is meant to provide the mining operators time to establish processing plants and downstream industries.
Demand for critical minerals such as nickel and copper has increased over the past decades as a result of the development of green initiatives such as the production of electric vehicles.
“Nickel and copper are key components in the production of lithium batteries of EVs and if we can harness the potential of these minerals here in the country, we can secure our place in the global supply chain, particularly in the production of EV batteries and maybe someday, our very own EV,” the seasoned lawmaker said.
The prohibition on exports of critical minerals is not unique to Indonesia and is in fact a global trend, albeit in varying degrees.
“Between 2009 and 2020, some 53 countries have instituted export prohibitions on critical minerals.”
According to the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development, between 2009 and 2020, some 53 countries have instituted export prohibitions on critical minerals.
Other notable countries that have imposed prohibitions are Namibia, for unprocessed lithium and other critical minerals, and Zimbabwe for chromium.
The Senate chief said the motivation for states to adopt this policy is understandable and the economic benefits are quantifiable.
In the case of Indonesia, data cited by the Indonesian Chamber of Commerce and Industry shows the export value of the country’s nickel exports at US$20.9 billion in 2021 from a mere US$1.1 billion in 2014 before the prohibition on exports of nickel ore was imposed.
Once the law is enacted, he said it would be key for the government to do its part in helping the industry players in putting up their respective mineral processing plants within the transition period.
The Philippines is one of the world’s biggest producers of nickel ore with a production of 35.14 million metric tons in 2023.
