Mongabay reports that Indonesian prosecutors have charged three major palm oil companies, Permata Hijau Group, Wilmar Nabati Indonesia, and Musim Mas, with corruption related to a cooking oil shortage in 2022. It was revealed that executives from these companies had bribed a trade ministry official to secure export permits for their crude palm oil. These permits allowed the companies to bypass the government-imposed domestic market obligation (DMO) and domestic price obligation (DPO). The DMO required companies to allocate a certain quota of palm oil for the domestic market to ensure supply during the shortage. The DPO capped the selling price of palm oil domestically to keep it affordable for consumers. Overall, the company's fraudulent behaviour allowed them to sell palm oil abroad at higher prices rather than adhering to domestic price caps and quotas intended to address the shortage. This corruption caused state losses estimated at 6.47 trillion rupiah ($432 million). The executives and the official have already been convicted and jailed, with sentences recently extended.