Australian PM Albanese Thanks Indonesia for 250,000 Tons of Urea Exports

RRI.CO.ID, Jakarta - Australian Prime Minister (PM) Anthony Albanese called Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto on Tuesday afternoon, 21 April 2026. Indonesia's Cabinet Secretary, Teddy Indra Wijaya, said Albanese expressed his gratitude to President Prabowo for Indonesia’s move to begin exporting 250,000 tons of urea fertilizer to Australia in the initial stage.

"PM Albanese expressed his appreciation for the President's approval of the first phase of exports of 250,000 tons of Indonesian urea fertilizer to Australia," Teddy said in a statement on Tuesday.

Teddy also stated that Indonesia is expanding its fertilizer export market by exploring shipments to several other countries to strengthen Indonesia's role in the global supply chain. He said the total export commitment reaches approximately 1 million tons.

"In the future, some urea fertilizer will also be exported to India, the Philippines, Thailand, and Brazil, with a total export commitment of approximately 1 million tons," Teddy said.

PM Albanese confirmed his call to Prabowo on his X social media account the same day. He said that his country and Indonesia are working together to support the flow of essential goods and strengthen energy supply chains amid the crisis in the Middle East.

"I thanked President Prabowo for helping secure more fertilizer for Australia," Albanese said.

"Strong relationships in our region matter more than ever, and our two nations are the closest of friends," he concluded.

Earlier in mid-April, Australia's Ambassador to Indonesia, Rod Brazier, met Indonesia's Vice Minister of Agriculture, Sudaryono, at the Ministry of Agriculture office in Jakarta to explore urea exports. Sudaryono said geopolitical conditions, including the impact of the closure of the Strait of Hormuz, have affected global fertilizer distribution.

"With this disruption, many countries need urea. Indonesia has an advantage because it can produce urea from domestic natural gas, eliminating our dependence on imports for this commodity," he said.

The national urea fertilizer production capacity, as managed by the state-owned company Pupuk Indonesia, reaches approximately 9.36 to 9.4 million tons per year. By 2026, urea production is targeted to reach 7.8 million tons, with a potential export of 1.5 million tons.