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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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Monday, 24 March 14
SGX'S Q2'14 CFR SOUTH CHINA COAL SWAP CLOSES SLIGHTLY HIGHER W-O-W
COALspot.com: API 8 CFR South China Coal swaps for average Q2 14 deliveries lost 1.81 percent month on month and closed at US$ 74.82 per mt as o ...
Sunday, 23 March 14
THE COAL FREIGHT RATES SEEN SLIGHTLY FIRMING UP THIS WEEK - REDDY
COALspot.com: The freight market firmed up this week. BDI was up 8.26 pct week on week and index was closed at 1599 points. The Cape index was u ...
Saturday, 22 March 14
SHIP OWNERS INVEST $15 BILLION FOR NEWBUILDINGS AND SECONDHAND VESSELS DURING FEBRUARY - NIKOS ROUSSANOGLOU, HELLENIC SHIPPING NEWS
Ship owners have kept on their aggressive stance in the investment scene both for newbuildings, as well as for secondhand vessels globally durin ...
Friday, 21 March 14
DRY BULK MARKET STAYS ON RECOVERY MODE - NIKOS ROUSSANOGLOU, HELLENIC SHIPPING NEWS
The dry bulk market has reached new year heighs, as a result of renewed Capesize demand. The Baltic Dry Index (BDI) ended yesterday's sessio ...
Friday, 21 March 14
US COAL PRODUCTION UP 1.5%; WEST MISSISSIPPI COAL PRODUCTION DOWN 1.85% WEEK ON WEEK
COALspot.com – United States the world's second largest coal producer, produced approximately 19.0 million short tons (mmst) of coal i ...
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- Banpu Public Company Limited - Thailand
- Eastern Energy - Thailand
- Directorate Of Revenue Intelligence - India
- Mercator Lines Limited - India
- Indian Energy Exchange, India
- Sinarmas Energy and Mining - Indonesia
- Savvy Resources Ltd - HongKong
- Bhoruka Overseas - Indonesia
- Romanian Commodities Exchange
- Sakthi Sugars Limited - India
- India Bulls Power Limited - India
- PowerSource Philippines DevCo
- Indogreen Group - Indonesia
- Dr Ramakrishna Prasad Power Pvt Ltd - India
- Sojitz Corporation - Japan
- Barasentosa Lestari - Indonesia
- Posco Energy - South Korea
- Kaltim Prima Coal - Indonesia
- Bharathi Cement Corporation - India
- Bukit Asam (Persero) Tbk - Indonesia
- White Energy Company Limited
- Planning Commission, India
- Aboitiz Power Corporation - Philippines
- Energy Link Ltd, New Zealand
- Krishnapatnam Port Company Ltd. - India
- Toyota Tsusho Corporation, Japan
- Africa Commodities Group - South Africa
- Metalloyd Limited - United Kingdom
- Parry Sugars Refinery, India
- Goldman Sachs - Singapore
- Ambuja Cements Ltd - India
- PTC India Limited - India
- Jorong Barutama Greston.PT - Indonesia
- Binh Thuan Hamico - Vietnam
- Meenaskhi Energy Private Limited - India
- Global Green Power PLC Corporation, Philippines
- Simpson Spence & Young - Indonesia
- CNBM International Corporation - China
- Bukit Baiduri Energy - Indonesia
- Commonwealth Bank - Australia
- Thai Mozambique Logistica
- Energy Development Corp, Philippines
- Sarangani Energy Corporation, Philippines
- Sindya Power Generating Company Private Ltd
- Mintek Dendrill Indonesia
- Coastal Gujarat Power Limited - India
- Cement Manufacturers Association - India
- Oldendorff Carriers - Singapore
- Therma Luzon, Inc, Philippines
- Billiton Holdings Pty Ltd - Australia
- ICICI Bank Limited - India
- Vizag Seaport Private Limited - India
- SN Aboitiz Power Inc, Philippines
- Deloitte Consulting - India
- Gujarat Mineral Development Corp Ltd - India
- Truba Alam Manunggal Engineering.Tbk - Indonesia
- Pendopo Energi Batubara - Indonesia
- Maheswari Brothers Coal Limited - India
- GVK Power & Infra Limited - India
- Essar Steel Hazira Ltd - India
- Orica Australia Pty. Ltd.
- SMG Consultants - Indonesia
- Uttam Galva Steels Limited - India
- Rio Tinto Coal - Australia
- Power Finance Corporation Ltd., India
- Antam Resourcindo - Indonesia
- Economic Council, Georgia
- Australian Coal Association
- Electricity Authority, New Zealand
- Kobexindo Tractors - Indoneisa
- International Coal Ventures Pvt Ltd - India
- Cigading International Bulk Terminal - Indonesia
- Maharashtra Electricity Regulatory Commission - India
- Australian Commodity Traders Exchange
- Indika Energy - Indonesia
- Standard Chartered Bank - UAE
- Interocean Group of Companies - India
- Kohat Cement Company Ltd. - Pakistan
- Pipit Mutiara Jaya. PT, Indonesia
- Singapore Mercantile Exchange
- Bayan Resources Tbk. - Indonesia
- VISA Power Limited - India
- Ministry of Mines - Canada
- Siam City Cement PLC, Thailand
- Marubeni Corporation - India
- South Luzon Thermal Energy Corporation
- Iligan Light & Power Inc, Philippines
- Independent Power Producers Association of India
- Altura Mining Limited, Indonesia
- Dong Bac Coal Mineral Investment Coporation - Vietnam
- IHS Mccloskey Coal Group - USA
- Bank of Tokyo Mitsubishi UFJ Ltd
- Latin American Coal - Colombia
- Ind-Barath Power Infra Limited - India
- Vijayanagar Sugar Pvt Ltd - India
- Parliament of New Zealand
- Heidelberg Cement - Germany
- London Commodity Brokers - England
- Madhucon Powers Ltd - India
- Petrochimia International Co. Ltd.- Taiwan
- LBH Netherlands Bv - Netherlands
- Trasteel International SA, Italy
- Bangladesh Power Developement Board
- Karbindo Abesyapradhi - Indoneisa
- Timah Investasi Mineral - Indoneisa
- Coal and Oil Company - UAE
- SMC Global Power, Philippines
- Mjunction Services Limited - India
- Kideco Jaya Agung - Indonesia
- Kapuas Tunggal Persada - Indonesia
- CIMB Investment Bank - Malaysia
- Central Java Power - Indonesia
- The University of Queensland
- Asia Pacific Energy Resources Ventures Inc, Philippines
- OPG Power Generation Pvt Ltd - India
- TeaM Sual Corporation - Philippines
- Bhushan Steel Limited - India
- Gujarat Sidhee Cement - India
- Electricity Generating Authority of Thailand
- Georgia Ports Authority, United States
- Riau Bara Harum - Indonesia
- Kalimantan Lumbung Energi - Indonesia
- Dalmia Cement Bharat India
- Kepco SPC Power Corporation, Philippines
- ASAPP Information Group - India
- Bahari Cakrawala Sebuku - Indonesia
- Carbofer General Trading SA - India
- Merrill Lynch Commodities Europe
- Bulk Trading Sa - Switzerland
- Indian Oil Corporation Limited
- Xindia Steels Limited - India
- The Treasury - Australian Government
- Offshore Bulk Terminal Pte Ltd, Singapore
- AsiaOL BioFuels Corp., Philippines
- Karaikal Port Pvt Ltd - India
- PetroVietnam Power Coal Import and Supply Company
- Anglo American - United Kingdom
- Jindal Steel & Power Ltd - India
- McConnell Dowell - Australia
- Gujarat Electricity Regulatory Commission - India
- Price Waterhouse Coopers - Russia
- MS Steel International - UAE
- Global Business Power Corporation, Philippines
- Coalindo Energy - Indonesia
- Manunggal Multi Energi - Indonesia
- Siam City Cement - Thailand
- Jaiprakash Power Ventures ltd
- Globalindo Alam Lestari - Indonesia
- Indo Tambangraya Megah - Indonesia
- PNOC Exploration Corporation - Philippines
- Bukit Makmur.PT - Indonesia
- Directorate General of MIneral and Coal - Indonesia
- Mercuria Energy - Indonesia
- Kumho Petrochemical, South Korea
- Wood Mackenzie - Singapore
- Tata Chemicals Ltd - India
- Eastern Coal Council - USA
- European Bulk Services B.V. - Netherlands
- The State Trading Corporation of India Ltd
- Global Coal Blending Company Limited - Australia
- Lanco Infratech Ltd - India
- Samtan Co., Ltd - South Korea
- Port Waratah Coal Services - Australia
- Chettinad Cement Corporation Ltd - India
- Medco Energi Mining Internasional
- New Zealand Coal & Carbon
- Attock Cement Pakistan Limited
- Vedanta Resources Plc - India
- Central Electricity Authority - India
- Salva Resources Pvt Ltd - India
- Edison Trading Spa - Italy
- Baramulti Group, Indonesia
- Kartika Selabumi Mining - Indonesia
- Star Paper Mills Limited - India
- GMR Energy Limited - India
- Holcim Trading Pte Ltd - Singapore
- Meralco Power Generation, Philippines
- Straits Asia Resources Limited - Singapore
- Leighton Contractors Pty Ltd - Australia
- San Jose City I Power Corp, Philippines
- Chamber of Mines of South Africa
- Asmin Koalindo Tuhup - Indonesia
- Filglen & Citicon Mining (HK) Ltd - Hong Kong
- Rashtriya Ispat Nigam Limited - India
- Alfred C Toepfer International GmbH - Germany
- Tamil Nadu electricity Board
- Semirara Mining and Power Corporation, Philippines
- Malabar Cements Ltd - India
- Indonesian Coal Mining Association
- Bhatia International Limited - India
- Sical Logistics Limited - India
- Ceylon Electricity Board - Sri Lanka
- Petron Corporation, Philippines
- Semirara Mining Corp, Philippines
- IEA Clean Coal Centre - UK
- Agrawal Coal Company - India
- GAC Shipping (India) Pvt Ltd
- Wilmar Investment Holdings
- Aditya Birla Group - India
- Neyveli Lignite Corporation Ltd, - India
- Borneo Indobara - Indonesia
- Renaissance Capital - South Africa
- TNB Fuel Sdn Bhd - Malaysia
- Grasim Industreis Ltd - India
- Intertek Mineral Services - Indonesia
- Makarim & Taira - Indonesia
- Ministry of Finance - Indonesia
- Videocon Industries ltd - India
- Minerals Council of Australia
- Thiess Contractors Indonesia
- Larsen & Toubro Limited - India
- Orica Mining Services - Indonesia
- GN Power Mariveles Coal Plant, Philippines
- Ministry of Transport, Egypt
- Formosa Plastics Group - Taiwan
- Sree Jayajothi Cements Limited - India
- Miang Besar Coal Terminal - Indonesia
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