JAKARTA - BHP Billiton Ltd may opt to sell part of its stake in its Indonesian coal project on Borneo island and form a joint-venture with other investors to run the project, officials said.
In June, BHP Billiton said it would not go ahead with the Haju trial coal mine in Central Kalimantan because it did not fit with its long-term investment strategy.
"BHP is looking at a joint-venture with other investors. They are interested in holding a majority shareholding in the joint-venture," director general of mining, coal and geothermal at the energy and mines ministry. Bambang Setiawan said
Setiawan said the firm had informally notified the government on the possible joint-venture option.
The global financial crisis and sharp falls in metals as well as coal prices have forced some companies to abandon or put on hold their plans to bring new mines on stream.
Haju was stage one of the Maruwai coal project, the 100 per cent BHP Billiton owned metallurgical coal deposit, in Central Kalimantan which was expected to produce 1 million tonnes of metallurgical coal - used for steel-making - per year.
In June last year, the firm announced it would invest $US100 million ($A115.5 million) to develop the project which was expected to start producing in the middle of this year.
"We are expanding options (for the project) by looking at a potential joint-venture aside from the option of selling it entirely," president director of PT Lahai Coal Indra Diannanjaya said.
"But there is no final decision yet. We are still reviewing the options," Mr Diannanjaya added.
Some companies have shown an interest in buying BHP Billiton's coal project, including Indonesian private equity fund Saratoga capital.
In November last year, BHP decided also to scrap a study into developing an integrated nickel project in eastern Indonesia which was under a conditional agreement with Indonesian state miner PT Aneka Tambang Tbk.
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