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The rising coal price is a great boost for the corporate earnings of coal mining companies as well as the share prices of those companies that are listed on the Indonesia Stock Exchange. Newcastle Coal Futures (January 2018 delivery) touched USD $97.10 per metric ton at the end of last week, up 26 percent so far this year. Meanwhile, prices of energy commodities are expected to rise further in the remainder of the year.
The value of Indonesia's coal exports to China during January-August 2017 reached USD $1.68 billion, up 63 percent compared to the export value of the commodity in the same period (to China) one year earlier (USD $1.03 billion) according to the Trade Attaché of the Indonesian Embassy in Beijing.
Despite the recovering coal price, actual coal production in Indonesia remained relatively low up to the third quarter in 2017. Based on data from Indonesia's Energy and Mineral Resources Ministry, national coal output reached 294.5 million tons up to 31 August 2017, roughly 62 percent of the full-year target (477 million tons) that was set by the Energy Ministry.
While we have entered the last quarter of 2017, the coal price continues to climb. Indonesia's benchmark coal price (in Indonesian: Harga Batubara Acuan, or HBA) rose 2.13 percent month-on-month (m/m) to USD $93.99 per metric ton in October 2017. The average HBA price so far in 2017 stands at USD $84.22 per ton, up significantly from an average of USD $61.84 per ton in full-year 2016.
Several big coal mining companies, listed on the Indonesia Stock Exchange, saw their shares slide drastically on Wednesday (13/09) after Indonesian Energy and Mineral Resources Minister Ignasius Jonan announced to be considering formulating new rules to determine the price of coal for domestic supplies. However, no time-frame was given as Jonan will first listen to input from the mining sector.
Indonesia's reference coal price surged in September 2017. Southeast Asia's largest economy's benchmark coal price (in Indonesian: Harga Batubara Acuan, or HBA) soared 9.6 percent month-on-month (m/m) to USD $92.03 per metric ton, from USD $83.97 in August. Indonesia's HBA is now at its highest position since December 2016.
Coal supplies in China are estimated to show a 5.8 million ton surplus in the September-October 2017 period in line with sliding coal demand in the world's second-largest economy. Therefore, coal prices should come under pressure starting from mid-August up to late October 2017. Coal demand in China will ease as local weather conditions turn normal. Meanwhile, local coal supplies are seen growing as miners want to take advantage of the higher coal price.
The coal price has gained some further momentum over the past month. Indonesia's benchmark coal price (in Indonesian: Harga Batubara Acuan, or HBA) rose 6.36 percent month-on-month (m/m) to USD $83.97 per metric ton in August 2017. The average HBA price so far in 2017 stands at USD $82.02 per ton, up significantly from an average of USD $61.8 per ton in full-year 2016.
The price of coal rose at the end of trading on Wednesday (26/07) in line with strengthening crude oil prices. Coal futures (January 2018 contracts, the most-active contract on the Rotterdam commodities exchange), finished 0.03 percent higher at USD $73.15 per metric ton. Hence, coal extended its rise after a 1.04 percent increase on the previous trading day (25/07).
The coal price weakened at the end of trading on Monday (24/07). Coal futures (January 2018 contracts, the most active contract on the Rotterdam commodities exchange), fell 1.84 percent to USD $72.38 per metric ton on Monday, reversing from their performance on the preceding trading session (Friday 21/07) when coal prices rose 0.45 percent to USD $73.74 per metric ton.
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On Monday (11/05), it was announced that the reference coal price of Indonesia declined 5.2 percent (month-on-month) to an all-time low of USD $61.08 per metric ton in May. This benchmark price, which is set by the government each month based on the average of four coal indexes (Indonesia Coal Index, Platts Index, New Castle Export Index and New Castle Global Coal Index), continued to plummet due to the coal oversupply in combination with weak global coal demand (particularly falling demand from China).
The government of Indonesia plans to raise royalties for coal mining companies that hold a Mining Business Permit (Izin Usaha Pertambangan, abbreviated IUP) by revising Government Regulation No. 9 - 2012 on Tariff and Types of Non-Tax Revenue in a move to generate more state income. R. Sukhyar, Director General for Coal and Mineral Resources at the Indonesian Ministry of Energy and Mineral Resources, said that the domestic coal industry remains a vital source of state income, particularly amid diminished mineral exports.
Mining in Indonesia includes a part or all stages of coal and mineral exploration and exploitation. Minerals are defined by law number 4 of 2009 on Mineral and Coal Mining (“Mining Law”) as inorganic compounds which possess specific characteristics and compositions in the form of ores. Coal is defined as sediment of organic carbon which is naturally formed from plants. Mining in Indonesia does not include any activities related to exploration and exploitation of geothermal, oil and gas and ground water.
Global copper prices can come under pressure as Newmont Nusa Tenggara (NNT) has started to export copper concentrate again this week after a nine-month hiatus caused by the dispute between the Indonesian government and NNT about Law No. 4 of 2009 on Mineral and Coal Mining (the “New Mining Law” of Indonesia), which sets high export taxes on unprocessed mineral exports (and stipulates a complete ban by 2017), in an effort to force Indonesian miners to build local processing facilities.
The benchmark stock index of Indonesia - known as the Jakarta Composite Index or IHSG - rose 0.17 percent to 4,921.39 points on Tuesday (13/05), impacted by investors' reaction to positive earnings reports of Indonesian coal miners in the first quarter of 2014. Today, foreign investors recorded net buying of IDR 64 billion (USD $5.6 million) and accounted for 31 percent of trading activity. However, investors remain cautious ahead of the presidential election that is scheduled for 9 July 2014 and wait for more clarity about the (vice) presidential candidates that will compete.
Production of coalbed methane (CBM) in Indonesia will most likely not meet the government's target of 500 million standard cubic feet per day (mmscfd) in 2015. Coalbed methane, an environmental friendly fuel, is a form of natural gas that occurs in coal beds. Although the production of CBM is a complementary aspect of coal mining, it has only started to gain attention in recent years. CBM reserves in Indonesia, estimated at 453 trillion cubic feet (tcf), are among the world's largest CBM reserves (6 percent of total global CBM reserves).
Coal is one of the most important commodities for Indonesia in terms of state revenue as it accounts for about 85 percent of the country's total mining revenue. Therefore, when global coal prices fell sharply from 2011 (amid a slowing global economy), Indonesia felt the impact. In a response to lower coal prices, Indonesian miners actually increased coal output thus placing more downward pressure on coal prices and profit margins. Although the coal industry will remain frail for some time to come, long-term prospects are still strong.
Indonesia's Ministry of Energy and Mineral Resources plans to set royalties for all types of coal at 13.5 percent (of net sales) as part of a revision of Government Regulation No. 9 - 2012 on Tariff and Types of Non-Tax Revenue. Currently, the percentage of royalty depends on the quality of the coal that is extracted as well as the type of permit that is issued to the coal miner. Apart from higher coal royalties, the Indonesian government also proposes a windfall profits tax in case there is a sharp upward price correction.
ICRA Indonesia, an independent credit rating agency and subsidiary of ICRA Ltd. (associate of Moody's Investors Service), publishes a monthly newsletter which provides an update on the financial and economic developments in Indonesia of the last month. In the October 2013 edition, a number of important issues that are monitored include Indonesia's inflation rate, the trade balance, the current account deficit, the IDR rupiah exchange rate, and gross domestic product (GDP) growth. Below is an excerpt:
Concerns have arisen over the government's plan to increase royalties and export duties for coal. The Indonesian Coal Mining Association (APBI) expects that this policy will lead to the closure of various coal miners while increasing acts of illegal mining. According to Bob Kamandanu, chairman of the APBI, 60 million tons of coal per year is not listed by any authority and thus can be labeled 'illegal'. Illegal coal mining also implies that the Indonesian government misses out on about IDR 5.6 trillion (USD $495.6 million) per year.
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