KPC waiting for govt action before making final decision
KPC waiting for govt action before making final decision
JAKARTA (JP): PT Kaltim Prima Coal (KPC) is waiting for the
government to end a blockade of its mine in Sanggata regency,
East Kalimantan, before issuing a final decision on whether it
will maintain its operation or pull out of the province.
The KPC representative in Jakarta, Bambang Susanto, said the
company was waiting for the government to disperse the KPC
workers blockading the mine by next Friday.
"Given the circumstances, KPC has decided to defer a decision
pending the outcome of this latest government initiative,"
Bambang said after the company's shareholders meeting on
Wednesday.
The owners of KPC, Anglo-Australian mining company Rio Tinto
and British-American oil and gas company Beyond Petroleum (BP),
have discussed a number of options to cope with the impact of the
workers' blockade and the actions which may be taken if the
blockade continues, Bambang said.
KPC's operation remains closed amid faltering negotiations
with some 200 striking workers who are demanding a salary
increase.
The company has said that since the blockade began in mid-
June, it has lost over US$50 million, or the equivalent to 1.85
million metric tons of coal.
The company declared force majeure to its customers earlier
this month to avoid paying penalties for its inability to ship
coal.
Bambang said KPC might declare force majeure to the
government, which would exempt it from having to pay its full
obligation as contained in its contract.
The government promised to end the blockade by Friday but the
Indonesian Prosperous Labor Union (SBSI), which organized the
strike, requested local police not to take any action against the
workers until Tuesday next week.
"They (SBSI) said they needed more time for discussion among
themselves," Bambang explained.
He said the local police had yet to response to SBSI's
request. "But if the police decide to wait until Tuesday of next
week, then KPC will also have to delay its decision until then."
Patience
The director general for mining at the Ministry of Mines and
Energy, Surna Tjahja Djadjadiningrat, asked KPC to remain patient
and give the police time to deal with the blockade.
"Everything now depends on the local police," Surna told The
Jakarta Post on Tuesday.
Surna said a final resolution of KPC's case was beyond his
authority and that he had called all related parties, including
the Ministry of Manpower, to help settle the dispute.
"It is actually a matter of law enforcement, but does the
National Police chief understand the importance of this matter?"
he said.
He said there was little the government could do if KPC
declared force majeure. "But it's not the material loss I am
worried about, it's our reputation on the international market
that is at stake now."
KPC is Indonesia's largest coal exporter, with markets in
Asia, Europe and America.
SBSI chairman Muchtar Pakpahan said he was ready to lift the
blockade on KPC's mine if the company agreed not to take
disciplinary measures against the striking workers.
He said the main issue hampering a final settlement was not
the salary increase, but the possibility that KPC might fire the
strikers over trivial matters once they went back to work.
"I cannot allow the workers to face that threat after they
struggled so hard to increase the salary of all KPC employees,"
he told the Post late on Tuesday.
He said KPC insisted on issuing warning letters to the workers
taking part in the strike.
That measure, he said, was only a pretense to fire the workers
for any minor violations of company regulation.
Bambang said KPC was determined to issue the warning letters,
but said the reason for this was not the strike itself. "During
the strike, the workers caused damage to several production
facilities and also physically threatened other workers."
Bambang said the workers had a right to stage strikes as
stipulated by law. However, he charged SBSI with violating the
procedures for staging a strike, which he said made their action
illegal. (bkm)