Indonesia's coal exports to rise to 64m tons this year

Indonesia's coal exports will increase 12 percent to 64 million tons this year, with Indonesia's top five non-government-owned coal miners all boosting output this year to 59 million metric tons, from 49.7 million in 2000.

This compares with Indonesia's total output of 8.6 million tons in 1989, said Graeme Robertson, president of PT Adaro, Indonesia's No. 1 coal producer.

"New and expanded production capacity is currently under development to take advantage of the tight supply situation,"' Robertson said. "The demand for thermal coal in the Asian region is constantly increasing.''

Meanwhile, Alastair Grant, marketing manager of PT Adaro, said most Indonesia's coal miners had no stocks at their inventory due to tight demand for coal both in the domestic and export market.

"At the moment in Indonesia, there are zero stocks,'' Grant said at the Coaltrans Asia conference in Sydney. ``There is a shortage of coal so that alone should maintain prices for at least six months."

Adaro is one of Indonesia's three largest foreign-owned coal companies.

The others are PT Kaltim Prima Coal (KPC), jointly owned by BP Plc and Rio Tinto Group, and PT Arutmin, 80 percent owned by Australia's BHP Ltd. The remaining two large non-government-owned miners are PT Kideco Jaya Agung, and PT Berau Coal.

KPC has about half a million tons in stockpiles, which it could sell quickly, said Ross Tromans, the company's general manager, marketing.

"The reason we haven't done it (sold the coal) is we think the price is going up," he said. "You would expect a bit of suffering (in spot prices) just after contract prices have been set, but nobody's got any coal. It's going to be above $34 for Australian coal by October/November."

Steaming coal loaded on a ship for immediate delivery at Newcastle, Australia's largest coal port, costs about $33.50 a ton, compared with $21 early last year.

Demand for coal from power stations across Asia Pacific has been rising sharply, amid lower shipments from South Africa and the U.S..

Indonesia and two other steaming coal exporters -- Australia and China -- will ship about 12 percent more of the fuel this year to meet a rise in demand from power stations and to take advantage of higher prices.

Coal prices in Asia have risen more than 50 percent in a year as electricity demand increased and the cost of rival fuels such as oil and gas rose to their highest levels in 10 years or more.

Exports by the three countries are forecast to rise to 219 million metric tons from 195 million last year, coal industry officials said. World exports for 2001 are expected to total about 350 million tons. (*)