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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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Saturday, 27 September 14
MORE COAL MINERS AGREE TO AMEND CONTRACTS - THE JAKARTA POST
The Energy and Mineral Resources Ministry is in a rush to beat a deadline for the conclusion of numerous memorandums of understanding (MoUs) with t ...
Friday, 26 September 14
INDIA SUPREME COURT RULING TO HIT STEEL, UTILITY EARNINGS, SAYS FITCH
COALspot.com: The 24 September Supreme Court of India (SCI) decision to cancel almost every coal block allocation since 1993 will have a negative f ...
Friday, 26 September 14
U.S WEEKLY COAL PRODUCTION FELL 1.8% WEEK OVER WEEK, SAYS EIA
COALspot.com – United States the world's one of largest coal producers, produced approximately 18.80 million short tons (mmst) of c ...
Friday, 26 September 14
ORACLE SIGNS EPC FRAMEWORK AGREEMENT WITH SEPCO FOR COAL MINE AND POWER PLANT IN PAKISTAN
COALspot.com: Oracle Coalfields PLC, the UK developer of a lignite coal mine and power plant in the south-eastern Sindh Province, Pakistan, has ann ...
Friday, 26 September 14
NEWCASTLMAXES ARE THE MOST SOUGHT AFTER VESSELS BY SHIP OWNERS TODAY SAYS VESSELS VALUE
KNOWLEDGE TO ELEVATE
Determining a ship’s fair value can be a very tricky business, especially when you’re the one paying. As such ...
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- Interocean Group of Companies - India
- Videocon Industries ltd - India
- The Treasury - Australian Government
- Georgia Ports Authority, United States
- Coal and Oil Company - UAE
- Sindya Power Generating Company Private Ltd
- Maheswari Brothers Coal Limited - India
- Banpu Public Company Limited - Thailand
- Holcim Trading Pte Ltd - Singapore
- Bukit Asam (Persero) Tbk - Indonesia
- Bukit Baiduri Energy - Indonesia
- TeaM Sual Corporation - Philippines
- Antam Resourcindo - Indonesia
- Grasim Industreis Ltd - India
- Borneo Indobara - Indonesia
- Vijayanagar Sugar Pvt Ltd - India
- Timah Investasi Mineral - Indoneisa
- Bulk Trading Sa - Switzerland
- Rashtriya Ispat Nigam Limited - India
- Wood Mackenzie - Singapore
- Medco Energi Mining Internasional
- Chamber of Mines of South Africa
- Ceylon Electricity Board - Sri Lanka
- Kapuas Tunggal Persada - Indonesia
- Aboitiz Power Corporation - Philippines
- Chettinad Cement Corporation Ltd - India
- Bhushan Steel Limited - India
- PNOC Exploration Corporation - Philippines
- Latin American Coal - Colombia
- Xindia Steels Limited - India
- GAC Shipping (India) Pvt Ltd
- Australian Coal Association
- Globalindo Alam Lestari - Indonesia
- Karaikal Port Pvt Ltd - India
- Ind-Barath Power Infra Limited - India
- Larsen & Toubro Limited - India
- New Zealand Coal & Carbon
- Malabar Cements Ltd - India
- Carbofer General Trading SA - India
- Kumho Petrochemical, South Korea
- Bahari Cakrawala Sebuku - Indonesia
- Dalmia Cement Bharat India
- Parliament of New Zealand
- Edison Trading Spa - Italy
- Aditya Birla Group - India
- Binh Thuan Hamico - Vietnam
- Asmin Koalindo Tuhup - Indonesia
- Meenaskhi Energy Private Limited - India
- Baramulti Group, Indonesia
- Dong Bac Coal Mineral Investment Coporation - Vietnam
- GVK Power & Infra Limited - India
- Alfred C Toepfer International GmbH - Germany
- Krishnapatnam Port Company Ltd. - India
- Coastal Gujarat Power Limited - India
- Power Finance Corporation Ltd., India
- Oldendorff Carriers - Singapore
- Sarangani Energy Corporation, Philippines
- India Bulls Power Limited - India
- Semirara Mining and Power Corporation, Philippines
- IEA Clean Coal Centre - UK
- Global Green Power PLC Corporation, Philippines
- Kepco SPC Power Corporation, Philippines
- South Luzon Thermal Energy Corporation
- Jindal Steel & Power Ltd - India
- Miang Besar Coal Terminal - Indonesia
- Lanco Infratech Ltd - India
- Australian Commodity Traders Exchange
- McConnell Dowell - Australia
- Leighton Contractors Pty Ltd - Australia
- GN Power Mariveles Coal Plant, Philippines
- Salva Resources Pvt Ltd - India
- Altura Mining Limited, Indonesia
- Coalindo Energy - Indonesia
- Samtan Co., Ltd - South Korea
- Independent Power Producers Association of India
- Directorate General of MIneral and Coal - Indonesia
- The State Trading Corporation of India Ltd
- Sree Jayajothi Cements Limited - India
- Ambuja Cements Ltd - India
- London Commodity Brokers - England
- Mercuria Energy - Indonesia
- Savvy Resources Ltd - HongKong
- White Energy Company Limited
- AsiaOL BioFuels Corp., Philippines
- TNB Fuel Sdn Bhd - Malaysia
- Karbindo Abesyapradhi - Indoneisa
- Planning Commission, India
- Energy Link Ltd, New Zealand
- Kaltim Prima Coal - Indonesia
- Bharathi Cement Corporation - India
- Price Waterhouse Coopers - Russia
- Eastern Energy - Thailand
- Commonwealth Bank - Australia
- Directorate Of Revenue Intelligence - India
- Asia Pacific Energy Resources Ventures Inc, Philippines
- Semirara Mining Corp, Philippines
- Anglo American - United Kingdom
- Sical Logistics Limited - India
- Singapore Mercantile Exchange
- Bhoruka Overseas - Indonesia
- IHS Mccloskey Coal Group - USA
- Siam City Cement - Thailand
- Heidelberg Cement - Germany
- Renaissance Capital - South Africa
- Central Electricity Authority - India
- San Jose City I Power Corp, Philippines
- Global Coal Blending Company Limited - Australia
- Goldman Sachs - Singapore
- Dr Ramakrishna Prasad Power Pvt Ltd - India
- Kideco Jaya Agung - Indonesia
- Romanian Commodities Exchange
- Maharashtra Electricity Regulatory Commission - India
- Pendopo Energi Batubara - Indonesia
- Siam City Cement PLC, Thailand
- Africa Commodities Group - South Africa
- SN Aboitiz Power Inc, Philippines
- Madhucon Powers Ltd - India
- Barasentosa Lestari - Indonesia
- Offshore Bulk Terminal Pte Ltd, Singapore
- Energy Development Corp, Philippines
- Metalloyd Limited - United Kingdom
- Mintek Dendrill Indonesia
- Tamil Nadu electricity Board
- MS Steel International - UAE
- Billiton Holdings Pty Ltd - Australia
- Minerals Council of Australia
- Electricity Authority, New Zealand
- Indian Oil Corporation Limited
- Gujarat Electricity Regulatory Commission - India
- Indika Energy - Indonesia
- Neyveli Lignite Corporation Ltd, - India
- Bayan Resources Tbk. - Indonesia
- Ministry of Mines - Canada
- Thiess Contractors Indonesia
- Central Java Power - Indonesia
- Cement Manufacturers Association - India
- Filglen & Citicon Mining (HK) Ltd - Hong Kong
- Indo Tambangraya Megah - Indonesia
- Kartika Selabumi Mining - Indonesia
- Meralco Power Generation, Philippines
- Parry Sugars Refinery, India
- Therma Luzon, Inc, Philippines
- Makarim & Taira - Indonesia
- Thai Mozambique Logistica
- Cigading International Bulk Terminal - Indonesia
- Riau Bara Harum - Indonesia
- Vizag Seaport Private Limited - India
- Eastern Coal Council - USA
- Gujarat Sidhee Cement - India
- Kalimantan Lumbung Energi - Indonesia
- Indian Energy Exchange, India
- Bukit Makmur.PT - Indonesia
- Orica Australia Pty. Ltd.
- International Coal Ventures Pvt Ltd - India
- OPG Power Generation Pvt Ltd - India
- Merrill Lynch Commodities Europe
- Vedanta Resources Plc - India
- Sojitz Corporation - Japan
- Deloitte Consulting - India
- Wilmar Investment Holdings
- Mercator Lines Limited - India
- Star Paper Mills Limited - India
- Toyota Tsusho Corporation, Japan
- ICICI Bank Limited - India
- Bank of Tokyo Mitsubishi UFJ Ltd
- Port Waratah Coal Services - Australia
- LBH Netherlands Bv - Netherlands
- Bhatia International Limited - India
- Straits Asia Resources Limited - Singapore
- The University of Queensland
- PowerSource Philippines DevCo
- Essar Steel Hazira Ltd - India
- Gujarat Mineral Development Corp Ltd - India
- Posco Energy - South Korea
- Petrochimia International Co. Ltd.- Taiwan
- Petron Corporation, Philippines
- Marubeni Corporation - India
- Indogreen Group - Indonesia
- European Bulk Services B.V. - Netherlands
- Economic Council, Georgia
- Attock Cement Pakistan Limited
- Tata Chemicals Ltd - India
- Formosa Plastics Group - Taiwan
- Truba Alam Manunggal Engineering.Tbk - Indonesia
- Intertek Mineral Services - Indonesia
- Sakthi Sugars Limited - India
- Uttam Galva Steels Limited - India
- GMR Energy Limited - India
- Rio Tinto Coal - Australia
- Simpson Spence & Young - Indonesia
- SMG Consultants - Indonesia
- Ministry of Transport, Egypt
- Ministry of Finance - Indonesia
- Jorong Barutama Greston.PT - Indonesia
- Manunggal Multi Energi - Indonesia
- Trasteel International SA, Italy
- Orica Mining Services - Indonesia
- PTC India Limited - India
- Indonesian Coal Mining Association
- Mjunction Services Limited - India
- Pipit Mutiara Jaya. PT, Indonesia
- Global Business Power Corporation, Philippines
- Bangladesh Power Developement Board
- VISA Power Limited - India
- PetroVietnam Power Coal Import and Supply Company
- Sinarmas Energy and Mining - Indonesia
- Standard Chartered Bank - UAE
- ASAPP Information Group - India
- Kohat Cement Company Ltd. - Pakistan
- Kobexindo Tractors - Indoneisa
- Agrawal Coal Company - India
- SMC Global Power, Philippines
- Electricity Generating Authority of Thailand
- CIMB Investment Bank - Malaysia
- Iligan Light & Power Inc, Philippines
- Jaiprakash Power Ventures ltd
- CNBM International Corporation - China
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