Coal Fund, not categorized as non-budgetary fund
Monday, July 10 2000 - 03:30 AM WIB
The coal fund was one of the topics discussed at a recent hearing between the Ministry of Mines and Energy and the House of Representatives' Commission VIII.
The question is that whether the coal fund managed by the Ministry of Mines and Energy was categorized as a non-budgetary fund that had to be transferred to a state account managed by the Ministry of Finance by Monday, July 10.
According to Minister of Mines and Energy, the coal fund - collected from the government's portion of income from coal mining companies, namely 13.5 percent of coal sales - totaled Rp 985.86 as of the end of 1999. The fund was projected to increase to Rp 1.3 trillion this year.
However, according to the secretary general of the Ministry of Mines and Energy, Djoko Damono, the coal fund was not categorized as non-budgetary fund because the money was already at a state account under the Ministry of Finance. The Ministry of Mines and Energy is involved only its allocations.
"The money is transferred by (coal contractors) directly to the state treasurer, not through the Ministry of Mines and Energy. The fund consists of three components, namely value added tax, royalties and coal development fund," Djoko said.
Djoko explained that the coal fund was introduced in 1993 through Presidential Decree No. 21/1993 that ordered coal contractors to hand over 13.5 percent of their coals to state coal miner PT Batubara Bukit Asam. The state coal miner then sold the coals, but the revenues from the coal sales was not transferred to the government, but it used all of them by itself.
"For what? We don't know. Maybe, it was for the company's operation, coal development, environmental maintenance, and so forth," Djoko said.
Then minister of mines and energy I.B. Sudjana asked then former president Habibie to issue a presidential decree to requires all coal contractors to transfer the coal fund directly to state coffer in cash rather than in the form of coal to PT BA. Then, a presidential decree was issued, and all coal contractors are required to transfer their coal fund to a state account managed by the Ministry of Finance.
Djoko said that he had written a letter to the Finance Ministry informing the status of the coal fund. (*)