The company will gradually increase production until 2025 when the coal transport capacity of 72.5 million tons is fulfilled, PT Bukit Asam corporate secretary, Apollonius Andwie C, said in Muaraenim, South Sumatra, on Thursday.
The production hike aligns with the increasing capacity of land transport means, including trains and Tarahan port in neighboring Lampung province, as well as other transport means, he informed.
The company believes the production hike still corresponds to its coal deposits in one of its mining sites in Tanjungenim, South Sumatra Selatan, which are pegged at 3 billion tons.
However, the company is still awaiting the Energy and Mineral Resources Ministry’s approval of its production plan for 2022, Andwie said.
To develop coal production, the company is looking at the current market demand, including demand from projects which will be conducted next year, the official added.
The projects include Unit 8 of the steam-fueled power plant in South Sumatra, which will need 5.2 million tons of coal, Andwie said. The construction of the mine mouth power plant is scheduled for completion in March 2022, he added.
The other project is coal gasification, built in cooperation with state-owned energy company Pertamina and Air Product, for producing dimethyl ether (DME) as a substitute for liquefied petroleum gas (LPG), he informed. The project is expected to require 6 million tons of coal, he added.
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Translator: Dolly Rosana, Suharto
Editor: Sri Haryati
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