Indonesia keeps urea exports open as Hormuz disruptions lift regional demand
Indonesia says it can keep exporting urea as long as domestic needs are met, with three countries already seeking supply after the Hormuz disruption.
Indonesia says it is ready to continue exporting urea as long as domestic demand is fully covered, positioning the country as a regional supplier while trade routes around the Strait of Hormuz remain disrupted. ANTARA reported that Agriculture Minister Andi Amran Sulaiman said three countries had already requested urea imports from Indonesia. He made the statement during a visit to the Panaikang Bulog warehouse in Makassar alongside Bulog deputy director Marga Taufiq.
Sulaiman said Indonesia would export urea because it is a producer and has received clear foreign demand. At the same time, officials stressed that domestic security of supply comes first. That line matches the position set out earlier by PT Pupuk Indonesia president director Rahmad Pribadi, who said after a working meeting with Commission XI of the House of Representatives on April 2 that exports would continue only after Indonesia’s own needs were secured.
According to Pupuk Indonesia, current conditions still allow the country to help neighboring states facing tighter fertilizer availability. The closure of the Strait of Hormuz due to conflict in the region has complicated purchases of key commodities such as oil and fertilizer. As a result, buyers are looking for supply from producers outside the most disrupted route, and Indonesia is emerging as one of the available alternatives in the regional fertilizer market.
Pribadi said Indonesia’s previous urea export destinations included Australia, India and the Philippines. He also said the country’s operational urea production capacity has reached 8.8 million tons, while installed capacity stands at 9.4 million tons. Even though global urea prices have jumped from around $400 to $800 per ton, Indonesia is in a more resilient position because it has domestic production capacity rather than relying entirely on imports.
Pupuk Indonesia estimates its export quota at around 1.5 million tons, while keeping distribution flexible depending on domestic supply conditions. That approach shows Indonesia is trying to balance two objectives at once: preserving internal agricultural stability and taking advantage of stronger external demand created by a geopolitical shock. For Asian fertilizer trade, Indonesian cargoes could become an important buffer if disruptions around Hormuz continue to constrain access to traditional suppliers.