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Sunday, 20 June 10
OUR COAL: ITS DEVELOPMENT AND CONTROVERSIAL ISSUES
 Indonesia’s production of coal has been growing amazingly. In the mid 1980s, national coal production was less than 1 million tons per annum, whereas energy planners (in the fourth Five Year Development Plan: 1989-1994) pointed at 10 million tons as the national production target.
The current production has jumped dramatically, recorded as 237 million tons in 2008 (predicted to achieve 270 million tons this year), making Indonesia a world class producer and the largest exporter of coal around the globe. The skyrocketing growth of our coal production has also incited many controversial issues.
Coal is considered as the dirtiest among fossil fuels, making environmentalists oppose their wide use
as fuel.
However, the proposal for ceasing use of coal — power generation, for instance — would be challenged by power utilities demanding low cost fuel that coal may offer and by the government, which has the responsibility to provide electricity as well as have revenue from exploiting its energy resources.
Despite the world’s rising anxiety of global warming, IEA (International Energy Agency: World Energy Outlook 2009) statistics shows that the world consumption for coal, for the last decade, is still growing the fastest among primary energy sources.
The environmental problem associated with coal in Indonesia is not limited to green houses gases (GHG), but also damage and pollution since its exploitation, transportation and uses to post mining.
It is easy to find where many coal fields are not mined appropriately according to “good mining and environmental practices”, coal transportation is not considering safety standards and is damaging rivers, (public) roads and seashores.
The coal mining has polluted the land, water and air of especially Kalimantan, where more than 90 percent of Indonesia’s coal mining operations take place.
It is sad that many of the previous mining areas have been abandoned without being properly reclaimed, whereas thousands of hectares of the island’s tropical forests have been converted into desert.
The soaring exploitation, including its negative impact on the environment, has a strong correlation with the number of licensing/permits awarded.
The introduction of the 1999 Regional Autonomy Law, subsequently followed by the 1999 Fiscal Balancing Law between the Central and Regional Governments have — to some degree — impacted on the coal licensing regime, where larger authorities had been given to regional/local governments.
Under the new licensing regime by local governments, requirements for coal permits tend to be relaxed whereas monitoring has not been done properly.
As a result, the number of permits (Mining Authorization/KP) has been growing considerably (currently 462, of which 169 are producing), coal production increases, but also environmental problems and the issues of illegal mining exist.
The question of who really owns the KP licenses exists, which was defined as that it can be owned by Indonesian national/companies only.
While the largest part of coal in Indonesia are being produced by large companies (the holders of Coal Contract of Work/PKP2B), some coal is mined by small scale and illegal miners.
It is believed that a significant amount of coal has been produced by illegal miners (some 5 million tons annually) and part has gone to meet export demand.
Wherever in the world, illegal miners lack interest in responsible mining and mine rehabilitation practices. Illegal mining is a problem for potential investors, the environment and government revenues.
The government has introduced measures to crack down on problems, including arresting illegal miners.
However, it cannot be the only solution since illegal mining is actually rooted in underemployment, local poverty and weak law enforcement, while the number of people involved in these activities is quite significant.
An alternative to confrontation to illegal miners by the central government (who awards the large scale PKP2B mining license) should be a cooperative and more comprehensive approach.
“Despite the world’s anxiety of global warming, IEA statistics shows that the world consumption for coal is still growing the fastest among primary energy sources.”
Work together with local/rural governments and communities to reduce poverty, educate/assist the illegal miners to increase their awareness on good mining practices (including mine rehabilitation), provide transition period fiscal incentives to encourage illegal mining toward the regulated mining sector, among others.
It needs to maintain an appropriate balance between the soaring exports of coal (about three quarters of production on average) and the domestic growing demand for the same fuel.
Push for exports is still coming largely from the traditional East Asians (Japan is the largest), while the coal-hungry India and China are also increasing their demand for our coal.
The exports will be competed with by the Blue Print for Energy Management 2005-2025 pointing out that one third of Indonesia’s energy primary energy mix in 2025 is to be supplied by coal, (the current share is about 15 percent).
Even though it is often mentioned that our coal reserves are quite large (current proven reserves of 5.5 billion tons; estimated resources of 105 tones) and that our reserves for coal are much larger than that of oil and gas, we should watch their fast rate of exploitation cautiously.
It needs to recalculate the benefit of exploiting them, taking into account their damage to the environment and what is left post mining. Where have all the revenues from exploiting that coal gone? Is the escalating export not jeopardizing the domestic energy security in the near future?
We have ample experiences, for instance in exploiting the resources-rich Kalimantan. The forests, oil and gas reserves have been exploited for about four to five decades, but it seems that the island has not enjoyed the fruits of the excessive exploitation: the current regional economy remains weak, infrastructure is poor and energy supplies for local uses have not been secured.
It needs to promote the terms “resources balance, depletion, sustainability”, start internalizing the costs of environmental impact and enforce those concepts into workable policies for our coal mining development.
The writer is the senior energy planner and an economist with the National Development Planning Agency. The opinions expressed are his own.
Source: The Jakarta Post ( Hanan Nugroho)
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Thursday, 13 November 14
MODERN DRY BULK SHIPS' PRICES START FIRMING UP - NIKOS ROUSSANOGLOU, HELLENIC SHIPPING NEWS
While the main story of the past few weeks has been the rebound of the dry bulk market, which has been a result of increased Chinese iron ore impor ...
Wednesday, 12 November 14
PANAMAX: WITNESSED A FAIRLY STABLE MARKET IN THE ATLANTIC
COALspot.com: Despite the fact that the Dry Bulk market noted another weekly increase, clouds of uncertainty returned mid-week onwards, as the mini ...
Wednesday, 12 November 14
SHIPPING MARKET INSIGHT - CHRISTOPHER T. WHITTY
COALspot.com: The fight continues between the low-cost iron ore producers and the big three: Vale, Rio Tinto and BHP Billiton. We are moving into a ...
Tuesday, 11 November 14
FACING CHALLENGES AND MEETING OPPORTUNITIES - INTERNATIONAL EPC CONFERENCE & EXHIBITION
Press Release: SKYCONNECTION and TRANSEVENT, which is fully supported by the Institution of Engineers Indonesia and Ministry of Industry of the Rep ...
Tuesday, 11 November 14
NEWCASTLE COAL SWAP CLOSED AT $ 52.65 FOR Q1' 15 DELIVERY
COALspot.com: API 5 FOB Newcastle Coal swap for Q1’ 2015 delivery decreased US$ 2.83 (-5.10%) month over month and US$ 1.35 (-2.50%) week ove ...
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- Romanian Commodities Exchange
- Heidelberg Cement - Germany
- Alfred C Toepfer International GmbH - Germany
- Australian Coal Association
- Karaikal Port Pvt Ltd - India
- Global Green Power PLC Corporation, Philippines
- Sical Logistics Limited - India
- Kobexindo Tractors - Indoneisa
- Indian Energy Exchange, India
- Attock Cement Pakistan Limited
- Krishnapatnam Port Company Ltd. - India
- Vijayanagar Sugar Pvt Ltd - India
- Minerals Council of Australia
- Interocean Group of Companies - India
- Agrawal Coal Company - India
- Gujarat Sidhee Cement - India
- Bukit Asam (Persero) Tbk - Indonesia
- Samtan Co., Ltd - South Korea
- Bahari Cakrawala Sebuku - Indonesia
- Georgia Ports Authority, United States
- Salva Resources Pvt Ltd - India
- Central Electricity Authority - India
- Eastern Coal Council - USA
- Intertek Mineral Services - Indonesia
- Chamber of Mines of South Africa
- Billiton Holdings Pty Ltd - Australia
- GAC Shipping (India) Pvt Ltd
- Coastal Gujarat Power Limited - India
- Central Java Power - Indonesia
- Energy Link Ltd, New Zealand
- Timah Investasi Mineral - Indoneisa
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- Asmin Koalindo Tuhup - Indonesia
- Jindal Steel & Power Ltd - India
- Independent Power Producers Association of India
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- Bulk Trading Sa - Switzerland
- San Jose City I Power Corp, Philippines
- Sinarmas Energy and Mining - Indonesia
- Grasim Industreis Ltd - India
- Maheswari Brothers Coal Limited - India
- Offshore Bulk Terminal Pte Ltd, Singapore
- Indian Oil Corporation Limited
- Neyveli Lignite Corporation Ltd, - India
- Goldman Sachs - Singapore
- McConnell Dowell - Australia
- European Bulk Services B.V. - Netherlands
- MS Steel International - UAE
- The State Trading Corporation of India Ltd
- Sarangani Energy Corporation, Philippines
- Carbofer General Trading SA - India
- Binh Thuan Hamico - Vietnam
- India Bulls Power Limited - India
- Star Paper Mills Limited - India
- Kalimantan Lumbung Energi - Indonesia
- Filglen & Citicon Mining (HK) Ltd - Hong Kong
- Coalindo Energy - Indonesia
- Cigading International Bulk Terminal - Indonesia
- Mercuria Energy - Indonesia
- Latin American Coal - Colombia
- Lanco Infratech Ltd - India
- Merrill Lynch Commodities Europe
- The University of Queensland
- SMG Consultants - Indonesia
- Simpson Spence & Young - Indonesia
- Bangladesh Power Developement Board
- Rio Tinto Coal - Australia
- Indika Energy - Indonesia
- Directorate Of Revenue Intelligence - India
- Bharathi Cement Corporation - India
- Barasentosa Lestari - Indonesia
- Mintek Dendrill Indonesia
- Straits Asia Resources Limited - Singapore
- Madhucon Powers Ltd - India
- Siam City Cement - Thailand
- Parliament of New Zealand
- Gujarat Mineral Development Corp Ltd - India
- Singapore Mercantile Exchange
- Wilmar Investment Holdings
- Parry Sugars Refinery, India
- Pipit Mutiara Jaya. PT, Indonesia
- Price Waterhouse Coopers - Russia
- GN Power Mariveles Coal Plant, Philippines
- Eastern Energy - Thailand
- SN Aboitiz Power Inc, Philippines
- Petron Corporation, Philippines
- Borneo Indobara - Indonesia
- Anglo American - United Kingdom
- TeaM Sual Corporation - Philippines
- Sree Jayajothi Cements Limited - India
- Metalloyd Limited - United Kingdom
- Oldendorff Carriers - Singapore
- Economic Council, Georgia
- White Energy Company Limited
- PowerSource Philippines DevCo
- London Commodity Brokers - England
- Baramulti Group, Indonesia
- Gujarat Electricity Regulatory Commission - India
- PNOC Exploration Corporation - Philippines
- Asia Pacific Energy Resources Ventures Inc, Philippines
- Bank of Tokyo Mitsubishi UFJ Ltd
- Petrochimia International Co. Ltd.- Taiwan
- Electricity Authority, New Zealand
- AsiaOL BioFuels Corp., Philippines
- Edison Trading Spa - Italy
- Kapuas Tunggal Persada - Indonesia
- Therma Luzon, Inc, Philippines
- Semirara Mining and Power Corporation, Philippines
- IHS Mccloskey Coal Group - USA
- Dong Bac Coal Mineral Investment Coporation - Vietnam
- Karbindo Abesyapradhi - Indoneisa
- Miang Besar Coal Terminal - Indonesia
- Sojitz Corporation - Japan
- CNBM International Corporation - China
- CIMB Investment Bank - Malaysia
- Dalmia Cement Bharat India
- Vedanta Resources Plc - India
- Savvy Resources Ltd - HongKong
- Cement Manufacturers Association - India
- Indogreen Group - Indonesia
- Holcim Trading Pte Ltd - Singapore
- Sindya Power Generating Company Private Ltd
- Global Coal Blending Company Limited - Australia
- South Luzon Thermal Energy Corporation
- Makarim & Taira - Indonesia
- Bukit Makmur.PT - Indonesia
- Malabar Cements Ltd - India
- Renaissance Capital - South Africa
- Wood Mackenzie - Singapore
- Uttam Galva Steels Limited - India
- Coal and Oil Company - UAE
- ASAPP Information Group - India
- Tamil Nadu electricity Board
- LBH Netherlands Bv - Netherlands
- Iligan Light & Power Inc, Philippines
- Manunggal Multi Energi - Indonesia
- Formosa Plastics Group - Taiwan
- Kideco Jaya Agung - Indonesia
- Ministry of Mines - Canada
- Leighton Contractors Pty Ltd - Australia
- Toyota Tsusho Corporation, Japan
- Mercator Lines Limited - India
- Marubeni Corporation - India
- Aditya Birla Group - India
- IEA Clean Coal Centre - UK
- Sakthi Sugars Limited - India
- GMR Energy Limited - India
- Meenaskhi Energy Private Limited - India
- Ministry of Finance - Indonesia
- Indo Tambangraya Megah - Indonesia
- Medco Energi Mining Internasional
- Bhatia International Limited - India
- Kartika Selabumi Mining - Indonesia
- Directorate General of MIneral and Coal - Indonesia
- Power Finance Corporation Ltd., India
- GVK Power & Infra Limited - India
- Bayan Resources Tbk. - Indonesia
- Mjunction Services Limited - India
- Tata Chemicals Ltd - India
- TNB Fuel Sdn Bhd - Malaysia
- Globalindo Alam Lestari - Indonesia
- Maharashtra Electricity Regulatory Commission - India
- Thai Mozambique Logistica
- Aboitiz Power Corporation - Philippines
- New Zealand Coal & Carbon
- Jaiprakash Power Ventures ltd
- Bhoruka Overseas - Indonesia
- OPG Power Generation Pvt Ltd - India
- Siam City Cement PLC, Thailand
- The Treasury - Australian Government
- Pendopo Energi Batubara - Indonesia
- Indonesian Coal Mining Association
- Africa Commodities Group - South Africa
- Kepco SPC Power Corporation, Philippines
- Vizag Seaport Private Limited - India
- Electricity Generating Authority of Thailand
- Riau Bara Harum - Indonesia
- Energy Development Corp, Philippines
- Ambuja Cements Ltd - India
- Australian Commodity Traders Exchange
- Planning Commission, India
- Kaltim Prima Coal - Indonesia
- Semirara Mining Corp, Philippines
- ICICI Bank Limited - India
- Bukit Baiduri Energy - Indonesia
- Orica Australia Pty. Ltd.
- Trasteel International SA, Italy
- Kumho Petrochemical, South Korea
- Bhushan Steel Limited - India
- Larsen & Toubro Limited - India
- Jorong Barutama Greston.PT - Indonesia
- PTC India Limited - India
- Truba Alam Manunggal Engineering.Tbk - Indonesia
- International Coal Ventures Pvt Ltd - India
- Banpu Public Company Limited - Thailand
- Antam Resourcindo - Indonesia
- Posco Energy - South Korea
- Global Business Power Corporation, Philippines
- VISA Power Limited - India
- Chettinad Cement Corporation Ltd - India
- Dr Ramakrishna Prasad Power Pvt Ltd - India
- Videocon Industries ltd - India
- Essar Steel Hazira Ltd - India
- PetroVietnam Power Coal Import and Supply Company
- Altura Mining Limited, Indonesia
- Thiess Contractors Indonesia
- Ministry of Transport, Egypt
- Ind-Barath Power Infra Limited - India
- Port Waratah Coal Services - Australia
- SMC Global Power, Philippines
- Commonwealth Bank - Australia
- Kohat Cement Company Ltd. - Pakistan
- Orica Mining Services - Indonesia
- Meralco Power Generation, Philippines
- Ceylon Electricity Board - Sri Lanka
- Standard Chartered Bank - UAE
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