Adaro promises to pay royalties by next month

Coal miner PT Adaro Indonesia has promised to pay its mining royalties to the Hulu Sungai Utara regency, South Kalimantan by Aug. 17, this year.

Should the firm fails to meet the promise, the House of Representatives (DPR) will ask the government to temporarily suspend the company?s production activities, House member Gusti Iskandar Sukma Alamsyah was quoted by South Kalimantan-based papers Banjarmasin Post as saying on Friday.

The legislator made the statement after a meeting with South Kalimantan?s governmental officials.

According to Gusti, the House?s Commission VIII overseeing mining affairs was informed about Adaro?s promise in a recent meeting with the directorate general of budget at the Ministry of Finance.

The amount of royalty payable by Adaro to the regency totals Rp 17.9 billion (US$=Rp 8,207), including Rp 9.8 billion for 2001 and Rp 8.1 billion for 2002.

According to the papers, Adaro?s external relation supervisor Muhammad Ismail admitted that the firm was facing ?some obstacles? to disburse the royalties, but he did not provide details. (*)