Government to build salt production center in East Nusa Tenggara

The government plans to build a salt production center in East Nusa Tenggara Province as part of its efforts to be able to stop industrial salt imports in 2027.

Marine Affairs and Fisheries Minister Sakti Wahyu Trenggono stated after attending the Indonesia Marine Fisheries Business Forum in Jakarta on Dec. 10, 2024, that East Nusa Tenggara has great potential to become a salt production center.

"We hope that Indonesia can follow Australia's example, which is capable of producing 10 million tons of salt a year," he said.

Australia is the fourth largest salt producer in the world after China, the United States, and India.

To that end, Sakti said that he would adopt production technology from other countries to ensure maximum results. He added that the government will lead the development and involve state-owned enterprises (SOEs) to enact the program. The Minister said that the business planning and budget requirements were still in the preparation stage.

The target is for the production of salt with a content of 97 percent sodium chloride (NaCl), a type of salt with industrial demand such as from the pharmaceutical industry, to begin in 2025. Meanwhile, consumption salt with 95 percent NaCl content has been fulfilled from local production.

Sakti emphasized that the government is optimistic that Indonesia could fulfill the need for salt with 97 percent NaCl content with local production.

"So we could [afford to] no longer import salt starting from next year (2025)," he concluded.