China has long benefited from cheap thermal coal imports from Indonesia. But that may be coming to an end.

The Chinese government last week announced it will add a 3% tax to imports of lower-quality lignite coal. The move basically targets Indonesian coal, which accounted for 97% of all Chinese lignite imports through the first seven months of 2013.

It will be interesting to see what effect the new rules–effective as of August 30–have on China’s coal import mix.

Indonesian lignite is one of the cheapest thermal coals on the market. Landing in China for about $47 per tonne.

via China Makes Cheap Coal Expensive.