Top coal executives barred from leaving Indonesia due to debts

The government is barring 14 top executives of coal mining companies from travelling overseas on charges that they companies had yet to pay off debts owed to the government, according to Detik.com.

"They will be barred from travelling overseas for six months from this month until January 27 next year," Director General of Immigration Investigation and Enforcement Syaiful Rahman said at his office on Tuesday.

Syaiful said the travel ban was imposed at the request of the Ministry of Finance on charges the companies have debts owed to the government. Syaiful did not explain the debt but it is probably tax arrears.

The 14 executives are as follows:

1. The executives of PT Arutmin Indonesia: Kazuya Tanaka (director), Endang Ruchiyat (director), Ferry Purbaya Wahyu (director), Edi Junianto Soebari (director) and Roslan Perkasa Roslani (commissioner). According to the Finance Ministry data, the company has debts totalling US$75.4 milion owed to the government.

2. The executives of PT Kaltim Prima Coal: Ari Saptari Hudaya (president director), Kenneth Patrick Farrel, an Australian (director), Abdullah Popo Parulian (commissioner), Nalinkant Amratlal Rathod (president commissioner), Hanibal S Anwar (director). The firm has debt totalling $127.1 milion owed to the government.

3. Edwin Soerjadjaja, the president commissioner of PT Adaro Indonesia. He has debts Rp 144.8 billion and $93.5 milion owed to the goverment.

4. Jeffrey Mulyono, the president director of PT Berau Coal. He has debts Rp 312 billion and US$26 million owed to the Ministry of Energy and Mineral Resources.

5. Mualin Tantomo of PT Libra Utama Intiwood.

6. Hendra Tjoa, the president director of PT Citra Dwipa Finance.

When asked for comments, Director General of Mineral, Coal and Geothermal Resources Bambang Setiawan told Petromindo.com that he had yet to be officialy notified by the Director General of Immigration about the travel ban. (Godang)