Barito River shutdown disrupts coal shipment

The shutdown of the Barito River shipping channel by the Barito Kuala Regency administration in South Kalimantan since June 5 is feared to seriously disrupt the supply of coal to Suralaya and Paiton coal-fired power plants, Kontan reported on Wednesday.

Minister of Trade Muhammad Lutfi was quoted by the paper as saying that coal export from producing regions in Kalimantan to several countries will also be affected as the river is a key coal transportation route.

Lutfi said that while the scale of the impact of the shutdown could not yet be estimated, he is concerned that it would also disrupt the distribution of goods in the regency particularly ahead of the upcoming Ramadhan Moslem pasting month. He appealed to the administration to drop the policy.

The Barito Kuala administration issued the shutdown policy of the Barito River shipping channel after the loca port operator PT Pelabuhan Barito Kuala Mandiri failed to reach agreement on waveguide rate with shipping operators. PT Pelabuhan proposed for a higher scout rate of Rp 300,000, while the shipping firms were only willing to pay Rp 250,000, Kontan said. (*)