Thai coal miner Lanna aims to buy Indonesian firm: Report
Saturday, August 31 2002 - 01:29 AM WIB
Finance Director Anun Louharanoo told Reuters the company planned to increase production this year and next to meet rising demand but that its domestic reserves would soon run out.
"Our domestic mines will close next year or early 2004, that's why we need to look for more reserves," Anun said in an interview. "Indonesia has large mines with good quality coal."
Srihasak Arirachakaran, director in charge of business development, said Lanna was looking for coal mines with reserves of about 10-25 million tonnes each in Indonesia's East Kalimantan.
"We are looking for 3-4 mines and we should get at least one later this year," Srihasak said. He declined to elaborate.
Lanna has an annual production capacity of two million tonnes a year of lignite and coal reserves of about 33.7 million tonnes. Lignite is used for power generation and cement manufacturing.
The company is 43 percent owned by Thailand's second largest cement maker, Siam City Cement Plc, and 10 percent by the country's biggest coal mining firm Banpu Plc .
"We don't have any problem with markets but we just have limited coal mines. This year we have to import from our overseas business," Anun said.
The firm operates two domestic mines with combined reserves of 1.7 million tonnes, and one Indonesian mine, PT Lanna Harita Indonesia which has reserves of 32 million tonnes.
Lanna owns 63.33 percent in PT Lanna Harita. It also has another coal mine in Indonesia, which has yet to begin operations.
In addition to the planned Indonesian acquisition, Anun said the company wanted to invest in power generating business to accommodate Siam City Cement's operations, and in the shipping business in the future. (*)