Malaysia will issue bauxite mining licenses in December or January, a Malaysian minister said Monday. The permit marks a resumption of mining activity after it was banned in early 2016 due to unregulated mining and water pollution.

Malaysia used to be a supplier of bauxite to China, the leading aluminium producer. Exports to China at the end of 2015 totaled nearly 3.5 million tons per month. Most of Malaysia's bauxite is mined in guandan county in pahang state on the east coast.

The government lifted the mining ban earlier this year, but later said bauxite miners must conduct an environmental impact study before getting permission to restart operations.

The government has imposed stricter standard operating procedures (SOP), including limiting exports of bauxite to 600,000 tonnes a month and creating buffer zones between mining and residential areas.

Xavier Jayakumar, Malaysia's minister of water, land and natural resources, said there were six months of process monitoring after mining permits were issued in December or January. Pahang state is considering starting with three local miners.

Xavier said: "we want to make sure that the SOP is implemented and if there is a mistake, we will strengthen the management of these areas." He pointed out that the lifting of export restrictions depends on the capacity of Guandan port. (From Alu)