SMR Utama drops smelter project, switches to coal
Friday, June 26 2015 - 02:24 AM WIB
IDX-listed mining company PT SMR Utama Tbk has dropped an earlier plan to develop a manganese smelter in East Nusa Tenggara after it sold its mines in the province, and switched to coal mining business.
?We?re now investing in the coal mining sector,? said Ricky Kosasih, Corporate Secretary of the company told Petromindo.com on Thursday.
SMR Utama had previously planned to team up with South Korean and Chinese firms to develop a US$10 million smelter in East Nusa Tenggara Province to process the manganese ores produced by the company and other mines in the region into ferromanganese.
The company, however, divested its manganese mine assets in the province run by subsidiaries Soe Makmur Resources and Transentra Nusantara end of last year.
Ricky said that the company is now relying on its mining services subsidiary PT Ricobana Abadi, acquired using proceeds from last year?s rights issue, as source of business. Ricobana is currently carrying out overburden removal, rental of equipment for coal getting, and coal hauling for Berau Coal?s project at the Lati mine in East Kalimantan.
The company said it would start production from its own coal mines, acquired in August of last year, once the price of the commodity has recovered to the $80-100 per ton level. The mines, owned by subsidiary PT Delta Samudera, are located in East Kalimantan, said to have low rank coal potential of 100 million tons.
Editing by Reiner Simanjuntak