E. Kalimantan hopes coal railway project to start construction in December

Petromindo|Khalsa

Construction of a coal railway project in East Kalimantan is expected to start soon with a groundbreaking ceremony scheduled to take place on December 1 of this year.

East Kalimantan Governor Awang Faroek said in a statement issued on Monday that the coal railway project, which will also transport other commodities produced in the province, will be implemented by Russian investor called Blackspice.

He said that construction of the railway project?s southern and northern tracks are ready. The 203-km southern track will link Panajam Paser Utara and Kutai Barat regencies, while the 217-km northern track will Lubuk Tutung in Kutai Timur Regency and Tabang in Kutai Kartanegara Regency.

?The southern track and the northern track will be connected in border of West Kutai and Kutai Kertanegara. The track will be connected with the Maloy Batuta Trans Kalimantan Special Economic Zone,? Awang explained, referring to the planned development industry zone where export port will be set up. No further details including timeline of the project were provided.

Previous reports said that the East Kalimantan coal railway project would be implemented by Russian Railways, which in 2013 unveiled a plan to build a 203-km coal railway linking West Kutai Regency and Balikpapan port town.

Meanwhile, Salman Lumoindong, President Commissioner of PT Kaltim Pelabuhan Internasional Maloy, the local subsidiary of Blackspice, said that preparations are in progress for the inauguration ceremony of the railway project. The ceremony on December 1 will either be led by Coordinating Minister for Economy Darmin Nasution or Minister of Transportation Budi Karya Sumadi.

Editing by Reiner Simanjuntak