Ambassador Japan for Indonesia Kanasugi Kenji sent a letter to the Minister of Energy and Mineral Resources Arifin Tasrif to lift the export ban coal which took effect from January 1 to 31, 2022.
Through the letter, Kenji claimed to know the news of the ban on coal exports from the Jakarta Japan Club, which received the letter from the Directorate General of Mineral and Coal of the Ministry of Energy and Mineral Resources Number b-1605/mb.05/djb.b/2021 on Friday (31/12).
The ban on coal exports prompted Kenji to write an official letter to Arifin on Tuesday (4/1). “The Japanese Embassy and Japanese coal exporters would like to express our seriousness regarding the implementation of the letter (coal ban),” Kenji explained in his letter.
Kenji said that since the ban was imposed, several cargo ships that had loaded coal could not depart. In fact, industry in Japan regularly imports coal to meet the needs of power generation and manufacturing.
“Industry in Japan regularly imports coal from Indonesia for power generation and manufacturing (about 2 million tons per month),” he said.
He added that the ban on coal exports had a serious impact on economic activities and the daily lives of people in Japan. Plus, currently the need for energy is higher because it is entering winter.
Kenji admits that he cares about the condition of Indonesia, which requires a supply of coal for its power plants. However, he admitted that the coal needs of the two countries are different.
“We care about the limitations of coal for power generation in Indonesia, but most of Japan imports High Calorific Value (HCV) coal from Indonesia,” he said.
He argued that the coal used in Indonesia uses a Low Calorific Value (LCV) type which is clearly different from the coal exported to Japan. Thus, Kenji asked the Indonesian government to lift the ban on coal exports.
“Therefore, we ask to immediately lift the ban on coal exports to Japan,” he added.
He added that at least there were several coal-carrying ships that were still waiting for the time to depart. “There are at least 5 ships transporting coal to Japan waiting to depart,” he said.
He also asked the government to give permission for the ships to leave as soon as possible. Kenji also appreciates when his request is taken into consideration in determining his future decision.
“We really appreciate it if you pay attention to our request and continue discussions with the Japanese business community to maintain and develop economic relations between Japan and Indonesia,” he said.
The letter was also copied to a number of high-ranking state officials, such as Coordinating Minister for Maritime Affairs and Investment Luhut Binsar Panjaitan, Coordinating Minister for Economic Affairs Airlangga Hartarto, Minister of Trade Muhammad Lutfi, and Minister of Transportation Budi Karya Sumadi.
Not only that, the letter was also copied to the Director General of Mineral and Coal Ridwan Djamaluddin, Director General of Foreign Trade Indrasari Wisnu Wardhana, Acting Director General of Sea Transportation Arief Toha Tjahjagama, and Chairman of Jakarta Japan Club Konzo Takuji.
(fry/one)
– .
