Sydney, Jakarta 16 September 2009 – White Energy Company Limited (White Energy (ASX: WEC)) and PT Bayan Resources Tbk. (Bayan (IDX: BYAN)) today announced the appointment of Standard Chartered Bank as financial adviser to their joint venture company PT Kaltim Supacoal (“KSC”), for the establishment of a project financing facility to assist with the next phase of the expansion of KSC’s Tabang project to 5 million tonnes in annual capacity.
Based on current information and proposed expansion plans, the final amount available under the facility is expected to be a minimum of US$150 million.
The facility is conditional upon the successful completion of project due diligence by Standard Chartered Bank, including the satisfactory operation of the initial 1 million tonne per annum plant at Tabang, which is now in its final stages of commissioning having recently produced its first batch of upgraded coal briquettes.
Financial close for the facility is being targeted for the end of the first quarter 2010 which is also expected to coincide with the finalisation of the Engineering, Procurement and Construction (EPC) contractor arrangements.
Furthermore, KSC is pleased to announce that Standard Chartered Bank has agreed to provide KSC with an immediate interim US$10 million Working Capital Facility to assist with its operating and production ramp-up expenses.
As announced to the market in April 2009, White Energy and Bayan have agreed to significantly expand the capacity of their existing joint venture in Indonesia to 15 million tonnes per annum in ultimate production capacity.
The next stage of this project is envisaged to comprise the construction of an additional 4 production modules adjacent to the current facility, to take the production capacity to 5 illion tonnes per annum by 2011.
About KSC:
KSC was established in June 2006 under a joint venture agreement signed by Bayan and the Binderless oal Briquetting Company Pty Ltd, a wholly owned subsidiary of White Energy. KSC has recently ompleted the construction of the initial 1 million tonne per annum coal upgrading lant at Bayan’s abang mine in East Kalimantan, and will soon begin to sell its high energy, upgraded cleaner coal poduct.
About Bayan Resources:
PT Bayan Resources Tbk and subsidiaries (Bayan Group) are one of the largest coal producing groups in Indonesia with integrated coal mining, processing and logistics operations. It is engaged in the business of surface open cut mining of thermal coal and one of the few large coal producing groups in Indonesia that mines and sells high calorific value coal. It also produces other grades of coal including environmentally-friendly, low sulfur sub-bituminous coal and semi-soft coking coal. The Bayan Group own and operate one of the largest coal terminals in Indonesia in Balikpapan, East Kalimantan with a handling throughput capacity of 15.0 million tonnes per annum. It currently also owns and operates a floating transfer station with the capability to load capsize vessels and utilize magnetic separators and an automated sampling system. The Bayan Group currently exports the majority of the coal it produces to utility companies, steel mills, internationally known commodity trading companies and other industrial end-users in countries such as Italy, Japan, Taiwan, Korea, the Philippines, India, Malaysia and China. It also sells coal into the domestic market.