Thai firm to tap coal deposits in Sumatra

JAKARTA (JP): A joint Thailand-Indonesia coal mining project will soon be initiated in Sinamar, West Sumatra, close to the Jambi border, and in Mampun Pandan in Jambi.

A meeting aimed at familiarizing local officials with the Thai contractor, attended by Thai ambassador to Indonesia Kasit Pyromya and West Sumatra governor Hasan Basri Durin, was held in Padang, the West Sumatra provincial capital, yesterday.

In the US$38.5 million project, the state-owned coal mining company Perum Tambang Batubara Bukit Asam (PTBA) will engage the Thai company Banpu and its Indonesian partner PT Sitrade as mining contractor in the two locations.

Annual coal production under the joint venture will start at 0.5 million tons in 1996, to gradually increase to two million tons at full capacity.

Proven coal deposits in the project area are estimated at 200 million tons.

President of PTBA Ambyo S. Mangunwijaya said during the meeting that Indonesia exported 20 million tons of last year's coal production of 27 million tons, making it the third biggest coal exporter in the world. (17)