(Reuters) – China’s potential ban on Indonesian bauxite exports by next year won’t have any impact on the industry, Antaike, a state-backed Chinese research institute said. However Antaike stated that there is an abundant supply of bauxite in Guinea.

Joko Widodo (Indonesian President) said Wednesday that Indonesia could ban exports from bauxite in 2022, as the country looks to refine its own resources.

Jakarta previously prohibited bauxite imports from 2014 to China. Before then, Indonesia was China’s most important supplier. They were permitted to resume exports in 2017.

Antaike sent a note on Thursday late that night stating, “If Indonesia restricts bauxite imports again, Guinea’s bauxite capability surplus can totally make up for Indonesia’s shortfall.”

It noted that bauxite-mineral projects in West Africa have a production capacity exceeding 100 million tonnes annually. The Chinese invested in them.

China was the top importer of aluminium in the world, importing more than 91,000,000 tonnes of bauxite between January and October. With a 15% share, Indonesia came in third place behind Australia and Guinea.

Antaike stated that the expected imports from Guinea will reach 58 millions tonnes in this year’s fiscal year. However, there are still many opportunities for them to grow.