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Monday, 06 October 14
' COAL-BY-WIRE' FROM SUMATRA TO JAVA - THE JAKARTA POST
 Coal from the island of Sumatra accounts for most of Indonesia’s low-grade lignite, a low-quality coal that receives a poor price in international markets.
Given this low pricing combined with high transportation costs and the fact that most reserves are located in landlocked areas, it is not feasible to export Sumatra’s coal out of the island.
It is more efficient to use Sumatra’s coal for a mine-mouth power plant, an approach in which we develop a power plant very close to where mines are located, use the low-calorie coal from the mines to feed the plant, and transmit the electricity, rather than transporting a low-value commodity, out of the mines.
With mine-mouth, we no longer require either barges or expensive railway-heavy infrastructure to transport coal; rather we need to have long-distance high-voltage transmission lines to bring “coal-by-wire” from mines to consumer centers, either regions in Sumatra and/or Java-Bali.
Essentially, with “coal-by-wire” we are transporting a higher-value commodity by wire from mines to customers. Coal stays in the landlocked areas and feeds mine-mouth, coal-fired power plants.
“Coal-by-wire” would definitely boost the development of a domestic market for low-grade coal. Today, our market for coal is very thin as we are one of the world’s leading exporters of thermal coal of a high quality in the international market.
Our exports have increased very significantly within the past decade on account of demand from fast-growing Asian economies. More than 80 percent of our coal currently produced is exported.
Indeed, coal is currently the most important source of energy for our economy. For decades coal has accounted for more than half of our power-generation capacity. And this will continue for a half century to come before alternative and cleaner energy sources other than coal become affordably available.
Our economy is also growing, and of course will require more electricity power and therefore coal – challenges that have to be met. Electricity generation now consumes close to 75 million tons per year, and will almost triple in the next 10 to 15 years.
However, domestic use of coal today notoriously suffers from infrastructure bottlenecks. Congested barges and ports, as well as a shortage of railways limit the transportation of coal from coalmines in two coal-producing regions, Kalimantan and Sumatra, to demand centers in Java-Bali, where most of our power plants are located.
The majority of our coal reserves in the two regions are located in landlocked areas that require rail transportation infrastructure to reach ports for export.
Either truck haul or rail is needed to transport the coal to barge ports and terminals.
Truck operating costs are about twice that of rail, but existing rail transportation infrastructure is severely insufficient.
Indonesia’s attempts to improve coal-transport infrastructure for the domestic market have not been very successful. Dedicated coal ports in Kalimantan have been planned for many years, but implementation has again faced bottleneck issues.
Specialized railways for coal in Sumatra have also been initiated, but this concept is still under development and has not yet received a higher-level mandate or legal authorization.
Delays in expanding the capacity of barge and transportation infrastructure cause inefficiencies and high transportation costs in domestic coal utilization. These high costs and infrastructure bottlenecks have held back the development of the domestic market for coal.
Our high-voltage transmission lines are also astonishingly limited. The state-owned electricity company (PLN) operates approximately 40,000 kilometers of transmission lines, with less than 15 percent of this total serving the island of Sumatra.
If we can build more mine-mouth, coal-fired power generation plants we will need to expand our transmission network across the island, interconnected to other transmission systems in Java-Bali.
A new set of lines of a high-voltage of 500 kilovolts and medium-voltage of 275 kV needs to be developed as a backbone network across the island, i.e. providing long-distance, reliable and stable transmission.
The distribution system and transformer capacity also need to be expanded to service a larger coverage of costumers and demand centers.
We are required also to develop an interconnected transmission system, as existing electricity transmission is not compatible across regions due to different systems and manufacturer standards adopted in the past.
The current initiative of developing inter-island interconnection lines between Java and Sumatra with 500kV High Voltage Direct Current (HVDC) lines needs to be completed in harmony with the mine-mouth development.
These long-distance transmission and distribution lines, as well as interconnected systems are required to exist before a system of mine-mouth power plants is commissioned to ensure that electricity produced can be transmitted in a timely manner and with minimum cost.
Both the central and local governments must work hand-in-hand to endorse incentives to encourage the private sector — independent power producers (IPPs) — to develop mine-mouth power plants.
Incentives need to be designed to enhance the financial viability of IPPs’ mine-mouth power plant projects.
PLN as an off-taker of IPP plays a fundamental role as the “coal-by-wire” agent, and has to be ready to absorb all of the risks associated with the development and operation of the system, including the difficulties in land acquisition and intra-regional compatibility of transmission systems.
Sumatra with its huge resources of low-grade coal can secure its own electricity supply and, eventually, can be the source of low-cost electricity with its energy radiating not only to Java, but also to every corner of the country.
Source: The Jakarta Post
The writer is deputy for energy and mineral resources at the office of Coordinating Economic Minister.
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Wednesday, 19 November 14
SHIPPING MARKET INSIGHT - BY KATERINA RESTIS
The current Ebola outbreak in West Africa has been declared as a worldwide health emergency by the World Health Organization and has had a great im ...
Tuesday, 18 November 14
VALEMAX DEAL TO DETERMINE DRY BULK MARKET'S FATE - DREWRY MARITIME RESEARCH
Vale’s accord to sell and lease four Valemax vessels to COSCO might have negative repercussions on dry bulk freight rates. Vale has committed ...
Tuesday, 18 November 14
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COALspot.com: Indonesian coal swaps for delivery Q1' 2015 lost month on month, gained week on week and day on day.
The Q1 swap has lost US ...
Tuesday, 18 November 14
FOB RICHARDS BAY COAL SWAP FOR Q1' 2015 DELIVERY CLOSED AT $ 66.31; UP 1.33% W-O-W
COALspot.com: API 4 FOB Richards Bay Coal swap for Q1’ 2015 delivery has gained US$ 0.27 (+0.41%) month over month and US$ 0.87 (+1.33%) week ...
Tuesday, 18 November 14
CHEAP OIL PRICES COULD RESHAPE GLOBAL OIL EXPORTING MAP - HELLENIC SHIPPING
Tanker owners have enjoyed a rather healthy 2014, but as the year draws to a close, the fall of oil prices is bound to reshape traditional, as well ...
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- Uttam Galva Steels Limited - India
- Price Waterhouse Coopers - Russia
- Sojitz Corporation - Japan
- South Luzon Thermal Energy Corporation
- Thiess Contractors Indonesia
- Globalindo Alam Lestari - Indonesia
- Intertek Mineral Services - Indonesia
- CNBM International Corporation - China
- Karbindo Abesyapradhi - Indoneisa
- Bharathi Cement Corporation - India
- OPG Power Generation Pvt Ltd - India
- European Bulk Services B.V. - Netherlands
- Carbofer General Trading SA - India
- Port Waratah Coal Services - Australia
- Parry Sugars Refinery, India
- Petron Corporation, Philippines
- Mintek Dendrill Indonesia
- India Bulls Power Limited - India
- Deloitte Consulting - India
- AsiaOL BioFuels Corp., Philippines
- Bangladesh Power Developement Board
- Oldendorff Carriers - Singapore
- GVK Power & Infra Limited - India
- Antam Resourcindo - Indonesia
- Bukit Makmur.PT - Indonesia
- Mercuria Energy - Indonesia
- Timah Investasi Mineral - Indoneisa
- GN Power Mariveles Coal Plant, Philippines
- Krishnapatnam Port Company Ltd. - India
- Africa Commodities Group - South Africa
- Mjunction Services Limited - India
- Edison Trading Spa - Italy
- Kepco SPC Power Corporation, Philippines
- Aboitiz Power Corporation - Philippines
- Ministry of Finance - Indonesia
- Wood Mackenzie - Singapore
- Kartika Selabumi Mining - Indonesia
- Kalimantan Lumbung Energi - Indonesia
- Star Paper Mills Limited - India
- Chamber of Mines of South Africa
- Metalloyd Limited - United Kingdom
- Borneo Indobara - Indonesia
- Makarim & Taira - Indonesia
- Sakthi Sugars Limited - India
- Eastern Coal Council - USA
- Posco Energy - South Korea
- Energy Link Ltd, New Zealand
- Holcim Trading Pte Ltd - Singapore
- Latin American Coal - Colombia
- PowerSource Philippines DevCo
- Siam City Cement - Thailand
- Global Coal Blending Company Limited - Australia
- Savvy Resources Ltd - HongKong
- Kapuas Tunggal Persada - Indonesia
- Ambuja Cements Ltd - India
- Ceylon Electricity Board - Sri Lanka
- Gujarat Mineral Development Corp Ltd - India
- Toyota Tsusho Corporation, Japan
- SMC Global Power, Philippines
- Trasteel International SA, Italy
- Rio Tinto Coal - Australia
- Altura Mining Limited, Indonesia
- Samtan Co., Ltd - South Korea
- MS Steel International - UAE
- Dr Ramakrishna Prasad Power Pvt Ltd - India
- Sindya Power Generating Company Private Ltd
- Tata Chemicals Ltd - India
- Malabar Cements Ltd - India
- ASAPP Information Group - India
- Dong Bac Coal Mineral Investment Coporation - Vietnam
- Electricity Generating Authority of Thailand
- Bhatia International Limited - India
- GAC Shipping (India) Pvt Ltd
- Coalindo Energy - Indonesia
- Cement Manufacturers Association - India
- Directorate General of MIneral and Coal - Indonesia
- Indo Tambangraya Megah - Indonesia
- Lanco Infratech Ltd - India
- Indonesian Coal Mining Association
- Karaikal Port Pvt Ltd - India
- Formosa Plastics Group - Taiwan
- Electricity Authority, New Zealand
- ICICI Bank Limited - India
- Indian Energy Exchange, India
- Planning Commission, India
- London Commodity Brokers - England
- LBH Netherlands Bv - Netherlands
- The University of Queensland
- Bulk Trading Sa - Switzerland
- Goldman Sachs - Singapore
- PetroVietnam Power Coal Import and Supply Company
- PNOC Exploration Corporation - Philippines
- Bahari Cakrawala Sebuku - Indonesia
- Bhushan Steel Limited - India
- Australian Commodity Traders Exchange
- Meralco Power Generation, Philippines
- The Treasury - Australian Government
- Standard Chartered Bank - UAE
- Australian Coal Association
- Binh Thuan Hamico - Vietnam
- Sree Jayajothi Cements Limited - India
- Sical Logistics Limited - India
- Videocon Industries ltd - India
- Straits Asia Resources Limited - Singapore
- Dalmia Cement Bharat India
- Vijayanagar Sugar Pvt Ltd - India
- Asia Pacific Energy Resources Ventures Inc, Philippines
- Thai Mozambique Logistica
- Bhoruka Overseas - Indonesia
- Global Green Power PLC Corporation, Philippines
- Larsen & Toubro Limited - India
- Economic Council, Georgia
- Grasim Industreis Ltd - India
- Vedanta Resources Plc - India
- TNB Fuel Sdn Bhd - Malaysia
- Semirara Mining and Power Corporation, Philippines
- Tamil Nadu electricity Board
- Truba Alam Manunggal Engineering.Tbk - Indonesia
- Wilmar Investment Holdings
- Leighton Contractors Pty Ltd - Australia
- Central Electricity Authority - India
- Indian Oil Corporation Limited
- Independent Power Producers Association of India
- Global Business Power Corporation, Philippines
- Parliament of New Zealand
- IHS Mccloskey Coal Group - USA
- Eastern Energy - Thailand
- SMG Consultants - Indonesia
- Sarangani Energy Corporation, Philippines
- Jaiprakash Power Ventures ltd
- Mercator Lines Limited - India
- White Energy Company Limited
- Simpson Spence & Young - Indonesia
- McConnell Dowell - Australia
- Georgia Ports Authority, United States
- Sinarmas Energy and Mining - Indonesia
- Chettinad Cement Corporation Ltd - India
- Minerals Council of Australia
- Jindal Steel & Power Ltd - India
- SN Aboitiz Power Inc, Philippines
- Orica Mining Services - Indonesia
- Directorate Of Revenue Intelligence - India
- Singapore Mercantile Exchange
- Bukit Asam (Persero) Tbk - Indonesia
- Kobexindo Tractors - Indoneisa
- Aditya Birla Group - India
- Renaissance Capital - South Africa
- Maharashtra Electricity Regulatory Commission - India
- Petrochimia International Co. Ltd.- Taiwan
- Bukit Baiduri Energy - Indonesia
- Jorong Barutama Greston.PT - Indonesia
- Indika Energy - Indonesia
- Interocean Group of Companies - India
- The State Trading Corporation of India Ltd
- Ministry of Transport, Egypt
- Semirara Mining Corp, Philippines
- Meenaskhi Energy Private Limited - India
- Asmin Koalindo Tuhup - Indonesia
- Filglen & Citicon Mining (HK) Ltd - Hong Kong
- Therma Luzon, Inc, Philippines
- Vizag Seaport Private Limited - India
- GMR Energy Limited - India
- Xindia Steels Limited - India
- Central Java Power - Indonesia
- Agrawal Coal Company - India
- Cigading International Bulk Terminal - Indonesia
- Pendopo Energi Batubara - Indonesia
- Ind-Barath Power Infra Limited - India
- Kohat Cement Company Ltd. - Pakistan
- Baramulti Group, Indonesia
- Gujarat Sidhee Cement - India
- Anglo American - United Kingdom
- TeaM Sual Corporation - Philippines
- Billiton Holdings Pty Ltd - Australia
- Manunggal Multi Energi - Indonesia
- San Jose City I Power Corp, Philippines
- Power Finance Corporation Ltd., India
- Offshore Bulk Terminal Pte Ltd, Singapore
- Coal and Oil Company - UAE
- Pipit Mutiara Jaya. PT, Indonesia
- VISA Power Limited - India
- Banpu Public Company Limited - Thailand
- International Coal Ventures Pvt Ltd - India
- Marubeni Corporation - India
- Essar Steel Hazira Ltd - India
- Riau Bara Harum - Indonesia
- Merrill Lynch Commodities Europe
- Madhucon Powers Ltd - India
- Commonwealth Bank - Australia
- CIMB Investment Bank - Malaysia
- Bank of Tokyo Mitsubishi UFJ Ltd
- Barasentosa Lestari - Indonesia
- Coastal Gujarat Power Limited - India
- Maheswari Brothers Coal Limited - India
- Energy Development Corp, Philippines
- Indogreen Group - Indonesia
- Miang Besar Coal Terminal - Indonesia
- PTC India Limited - India
- Attock Cement Pakistan Limited
- Salva Resources Pvt Ltd - India
- Siam City Cement PLC, Thailand
- Ministry of Mines - Canada
- Heidelberg Cement - Germany
- Medco Energi Mining Internasional
- Bayan Resources Tbk. - Indonesia
- Kideco Jaya Agung - Indonesia
- Gujarat Electricity Regulatory Commission - India
- Kaltim Prima Coal - Indonesia
- Orica Australia Pty. Ltd.
- Romanian Commodities Exchange
- Alfred C Toepfer International GmbH - Germany
- Neyveli Lignite Corporation Ltd, - India
- Iligan Light & Power Inc, Philippines
- IEA Clean Coal Centre - UK
- Rashtriya Ispat Nigam Limited - India
- New Zealand Coal & Carbon
- Kumho Petrochemical, South Korea
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