According to a note posted by UK-based London Protection & Indemnity Club on its website last week the partly laden ships could either be asked to sail "as is" or be stopped from sailing.
"Where it is not possible for the vessel to complete loading before January 12, 2014, we understand from the correspondent [London P&I Club`s correspondent in Indonesia] that the government has stated [via the media] that any ships that have part loaded mineral ore cargoes when the ban comes into effect will be required to sail as is," the P&I club said late last week.
"I believe they [the Indonesian authorities] will allow those ships [loaded fully or partially] to sail out," a source with a ship operator said Monday, adding there was a lot of confusion over the clearing of vessels by the customs officials.
"There is a lack of clarity at this stage," an India-based shipowner said Monday. "We have to wait and see exactly who is allowed [to operate out of Indonesia] and who isn`t."
The P&I Club had also cautioned its members whose vessels do not possess relevant permits and licenses for loading and exporting unrefined mineral ore cargoes from Indonesian ports, to ensure that the vessel completed loading before January 12.
There is no guarantee that partly loaded vessels at Indonesian ports on January 12 will be allowed to sail at all since in 2012, when the regulation was originally due to come into effect, the authorities had detained and fined vessels that were part-loaded, the P&I Club said in its note to members.
Indonesian President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono last week approved the mineral ore export ban in an effort to get better returns from its mineral wealth by forcing miners to process their ores before exports.