Kaltim Prima Coal plans to list shares on JSX

JAKARTA (JP): PT Kaltim Prima Coal (KPC) coal mining company announced yesterday it would float part of its shares on the Jakarta Stock Exchange next year.

Company vice president S. Hadiprayitno said in a statement that the planned float was in line with the company's coal agreement with the Ministry of Mines and Energy.

He did not give details on the agreement, but said PT Tambang Batubara Bukit Asam, the state-owned company assigned to control coal mining in Indonesia, had been asking the company since last year to divest at least 15 percent of its shares for local investors in accordance with its coal agreement.

KPC is jointly owned by the British Petroleum Company and Australia's Rio Tinto Ltd.

Hadiprayitno said the company planned to list its shares in the first quarter of next year, but the company had yet to determine the size of the float.

"(It's) subject to the necessary government approvals, prevailing market conditions and completion of other formalities," he said.

The company, which started commercial production in 1992, operates a major coal mine in East Kalimantan and is licensed by the government to operate in the area for 30 years.

Hadiprayitno said the company shipped 11.4 million tons of coal worldwide last year, up from 10.07 million tons in 1995.

The company's coal is exported to Hong Kong, Japan, Taiwan, the United States, European countries and Southeast Asian countries.

In 1995, the company exported 28.6 percent of its product to Japan, 28 percent to Taiwan, 17.7 percent to European countries, 9.6 percent to Hong Kong, 9.2 percent to the United States and the rest to Southeast Asian countries.

The company's coal production is approximately one-fourth of Indonesia's total output, while its exports contribute to about half of the country's total coal exports. The remaining half comes from several other companies.

The company said it would increase its production to 15 million tons this year and 22 million tons next year. (jsk)