Indonesian Coal Miner Plans $167m IPO to Finance Coal Boom

Indonesian Atlas Resources is readying a $167 million initial public offering to help finance building supporting infrastructure in its Sumatra coal mining hubs in Muba and Oku.

Indonesian Atlas Resources director Abdi Andre issued a statement noting that about $25 million of the IPO funds will go to compensation for restructuring Atlas Resources’s supply contract with Hong Kong-based Noble Group Limited to start a new marketing and sales contract, while another 27.5 percent of the proceeds will be set aside for acquisitions in new fields should an “opportunity arise,” The Jakarta Globe reported.

According to the Indonesian Coal Mining Association, if current production trends continue, then Indonesian coal output may reach 370 million tons by the end of this year, if not interrupted by excessive rainfall during the final three months, as during the January-August period, Indonesian coal production had already reached 235 million tons, with earlier estimates placing the country’s final 2011 coal production at between 340 million and 360 million tons. Indonesian Coal Mining Association chairman Bob Kamandanu said, “If between October and December, rainfall is high, total production may be around 340 million. But if everything goes to plan, production may nudge 370 million tons.”

By. Joao Peixe, Deputy Editor OilPrice.com