China’s Coal Buyers Resist Waiver Demands in New Indonesian Deals

China’s coal importers are resisting attempts by Indonesian exporters to include waiver clauses in the new supply contracts to free them from strict delivery volumes if the Indonesian government decides to restrict export or output quotas again, sources familiar with the negotiations have told Bloomberg. Indonesia, which is the world’s biggest exporter of thermal coal, has changed its production and export policies several times this year, stifling international shipments and forcing China, the world’s top coal consumer, to tweak import flows and domestic production.

Indonesia’s thermal coal exports have been crimped by government production quotas and heightened uncertainties about Indonesia’s policy in the coal mining and exporting sectors.