Island Of Borneo News

Indonesia said on Thursday it would allow 37 vessels loaded with coal to depart, in the strongest sign yet that the world's biggest thermal coal exporter is relaxing its ban on shipments.A senior cabinet minister said in a statement the ban implemented on Jan. 1 had been eased for miners that have met a requirement to sell a portion of their output for local power generation, after the state utility procured enough coal to ensure 15 days of operation."I request that this is supervised closely so this also becomes a moment for us to improve domestic governance…

Chinese thermal coal futures fell on Tuesday after Indonesia, the world's biggest thermal coal exporter, eased a ban on overseas shipments that surprised buyers at the start of the year, alleviating concerns about supply disruptions.The export ban was introduced after state power utility Perusahaan Listrik Negara (PLN) reported critically low coal stockpiles amid complaints miners were not fulfilling their responsibilities to supply fuel to the company. Driven by concerns about the impact to their economies which depend on coal-fired power generation…

Pacific Partnership 2017 (PP17) and Malaysian partners embarked aboard expeditionary fast transport USNS Fall River (T-EPF 4) arrived in Kuching, Malaysia, Apr. 14. As the second and main mission stop in Malaysia, and the third mission stop overall, activities in Kuching will kick off the large focus on humanitarian aid and disaster response, as well civil engineering projects for Pacific Partnership 2017 Malaysia. According to Lt. j.g. Robin Pepper, the mission's engineering sail-in echelon officer in charge, Kuching is going to be an exciting change of pace for the sail-in team after working only one-on-one with the host nation engineers at their last projects in Sri Lanka.

Indonesia expected to import 70 pct of LPG in 2017. Country seen shipping in around 5 mln T of LPG this year. Indonesian state energy company Pertamina expects to import liquefied petroleum gas from the United States to meet growing demand, with U.S shipments to Asia set to climb following transport developments like the extension of the Panama Canal. That comes as Southeast Asia's largest economy is expected to look overseas to meet at least 70 percent of its demand for LPG in 2017, said Daniel Purba, senior vice president of Pertamina's integrated supply chain unit. "In 2017, as we know with the commencement of operation of canals that can accommodate larger vessels…

Militant group Abu Sayyaf (ASG) has conducted frequent kidnap for ransom attacks in the Sulu and Celebes Seas since March 2016, says a report by Protection Vessels International Ltd. Islamic State-affiliated ASG has successfully extracted millions of dollars' worth of ransom payments for individual releases and has decapitated several hostages when ransom demands have not been met. In November, ASG shifted towards targeting commercial vessels and successfully abducted six crew members from a bulk carrier. Armed robberies have grown increasingly violent in Indonesian waters in 2016 with robbers assaulting crew members who attempt to stop them.

Indonesia's navy has found a tanker carrying almost US$400,000 worth of diesel that was taken by its own crew last week due to a commercial dispute, says a report in AFP. The navy said in a statement that the MT Vier Harmoni with 10 Indonesian crewmen was found off West Kalimantan province on the island of Borneo. There was a dispute between the charterer of the vessel and the crew when a promise of bonus payments was unfulfilled, said Vier Abdul Jamal, chief executive of the ship's owner Vierlines Asia Group. "The ship was escorted to the port of Tanjung Pinang for further investigation," said Head of Information Department of the Navy Rear Admiral Edi Sucipto. According to Edi, the search for Vier Harmoni commenced soon after a report that the tanker was taken to Batam waters.

Indonesia, Malaysia and the Philippines on Monday agreed to designate a transit corridor for commercial vessels crossing a maritime zone hit by a spate of hijackings by Islamist militants in the southern Philippines. Nearly 20 Indonesian and Malaysian tugboat crew have been kidnapped by the Abu Sayyaf militants this year, with Jakarta airing fears that the problem could reach levels seen off the coast of Somalia. Alarmed at the frequency of attacks, port authorities in some areas of Indonesia, particularly Kalimantan on the island of Borneo, have stopped issuing permits to ships taking coal to the southern Philippines. Indonesia is the world's largest thermal coal exporter and supplies 70 percent of the Philippines' coal imports.

TSHD 2500 Barito Equator first of its kind built in Indonesia. The delivery in early May of Trailing Suction Hopper Dredger (TSHD) Barito Equator demonstrates how Indonesia’s developing maritime industry is building ever more complex vessels, according to shipbuilder Damen. The 2,500 m3 capacity Damen TSHD 2500 is the first of its kind built in Indonesia and also the largest Damen standard hopper dredger built to date. For Indonesian dredging company Pelayaran Fortuna Nusantara Megajaya (PFNM)…

BMT Argoss’s expertise will be used to ensure the safe transfer of crews to and from offshore platforms and to optimise operability and minimise risks due to unexpected and unfavourable we
ather conditions during drilling operations. The contract is for two years, with an option to extend for an additional two years. The Java Sea is one of the waters of the East Indian Archipelago, bounded by the island of Borneo to the North, Sulawesi to the West, Java to the South and Sumatra to the East.

One of the world’s least known boat building areas is in and around the city of Samarinda on the Mahakam River in the province of East Kalimantan on the Indonesian side of the Island of Borneo. While some yards are building a dozen and more boats at a time in modern facilities, the tradition of building on the riverbank is alive and well. One such builder is Mr. Suwandi who, in mid-February, was preparing to launch a 28 by 8.1-meter tug for Mr. Syarifuddin who operates a stone quary at Palu on Sulawesi Island. The tug, registered in Samarinda and named Syarasd I, is powered by a pair of in-line six-cylinder Cummins KTA19 engines each generating 600 hp and turning propellers manufactured by Tesco in Jakarta through Twin Disc MG5321DC gears with 6.39:1 ratios. Pt.

Asian countries need to join forces to combat the piracy that makes the region's sea lanes the most dangerous in the world. Pirate booty these days include cargoes of oil worth millions of dollars rather than the treasure chests of earlier centuries, but today's buccaneers can still be cut-throat murderers. Incidents of piracy have increase 50 percent worldwide in the past year, and around half the attacks and hijackings occur in Southeast Asia. Indonesia, the world's largest archipelego state, was singled out as the country with the biggest problem at the meeting of 20 nations in Kuala Lumpur. There were over 100 acts of piracy in Indonesian waters alone last year. "We are very concerned about Indonesia, extremely concerned," P.K.