The Indonesian government has raised its export tax on palm kernel shells (PKS) to $10/t for May, up by $1/t from April, following high crude palm oil (CPO) prices. Export taxes have are at its highest level in more than two years since it last reached $10/t in January 2024.
The CPO reference price for May is $1049.58/t, up from $989.63/t in April, according to Indonesia's trade ministry. The PKS export tax is linked to the CPO price on a sliding scale, based on the export tax calculation announced by Indonesia's finance ministry in 2017 (see table).
The government has kept the PKS levy at a flat rate of $5/t. This brings the total export tax and levy package for Indonesian PKS to $15/t for this month, the highest level in almost four years, when it was $16/t in July 2022.
Export duties on palm oil products are paid to the treasury, while levies go to the government's Oil Palm Plantation Fund Management Agency to subsidise domestic biodiesel blending and replanting initiatives.
Japanese utilities have been stockpiling PKS to mitigate any prolonged inflationary impact from the US-Iran war. A Japanese power producer concluded several spot deals last week for 10,000t of Indonesian PKS in a $95-101.90/t fob Sumatra range for loading between mid-June and mid-July.
Up to 15 PKS shipments amounting to 150,000t were concluded also concluded last week for loading in July-December from the east coast of Sumatra to Japan at $93-100.50/t.
Argus assessed the Indonesian market for PKS that meets Japan's feed-in-tariff at $100.06/t fob east coast Sumatra on 29 April.
| Indonesia PKS tax and levy | $/t | |||
| Export tax | Export levy | Total tax & levy | Monthly CPO benchmark price | |
| May '25 | 7 | 3 | 10 | 924.5 |
| June '25 | 6 | 3 | 9 | 856.38 |
| July '25 | 6 | 3 | 9 | 877.89 |
| Aug '25 | 7 | 3 | 10 | 910.90 |
| Sep '25 | 8 | 3 | 11 | 954.71 |
| Oct '25 | 8 | 3 | 11 | 963.61 |
| Nov '25 | 8 | 3 | 11 | 963.75 |
| Dec '25 | 7 | 3 | 10 | 926.14 |
| Jan '26 | 7 | 3 | 10 | 915.64 |
| Feb '26 | 7 | 3 | 10 | 918.47 |
| Mar '26 | 8 | 5 | 13 | 938.87 |
| April '26 | 9 | 5 | 14 | 989.63 |
| May '26 | 10 | 5 | 15 | 1,049.58 |
| Source: Indonesia finance ministry | ||||
| Indonesia PKS export tax scale | $/t |
| Indonesia's monthly CPO benchmark price | Export tax |
| Up to $680 | 3 |
| $680-730 | 3 |
| $730-780 | 4 |
| $780-830 | 5 |
| $830-880 | 6 |
| $880-930 | 7 |
| $930-980 | 8 |
| $980-1,030 | 9 |
| $1,030-1,080 | 10 |
| $1,080-1,130 | 11 |
| $1,130-1,180 | 12 |
| $1,180-1,230 | 13 |
| $1,230-1,280 | 13 |
| $1,280-1,330 | 13 |
| $1,330-1,380 | 13 |
| $1,380-1,430 | 13 |
| >$1,430 | 13 |
| Source: Indonesia finance ministry | |
