S. Kalimantan authority threatens to halt coal shipment through Barito river

The provincial administration of South Kalimantan has threatened to halt all the shipment of export commodities including coal through the province's Barito river if the central government continues to hold the disbursement of the funds for the dredging project of the river, Kompas reported Wednesday.

"If until July, the dredging works of the river are not resumed, we will allow only the shipment of basic commodities such as fuel and rice through the river. The shipment of coal and other export commodities would be temporarily halted," the province's governor Rudy Ariffin said.

The governor said that the Barito was now in a serious condition due to silting-up of mud and sands in the river basin. He added that the government through the ministry of transportation had promised to provide additional funds of Rp10 billion to resume the dredging works which had been halted in July last year due to the lack of funds.

The government hoped that the disbursement of the funds would be soon approved by the House of Representatives so that the dredging works could be resumed this year. "If until June, the fund could not be disbursed, the condition of the river would be getting worse, especially during the dry season," he said.

Many South Kalimantan coal mines including Indonesia's top coal producer PT.Adaro Indonesia use Barito channel to transport its coal from mines to loading ports.(*)