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news continued Continued from pg 6... At the moment, Harum has four other coal mining companies besides Karya Usaha; PT Mahakam Sumber Jaya, PT Santan Batubara, PT Tambang Batubara Harum and Harum Energy Australia. Mahakam, Santan and Tambang run their activities in East Kalimantan. They have combined coal resources and coal reserves of 509 million tons and 106 million tons, respectively. Meanwhile, Harum Energy Australia, through subsidiary Cockatoo Coal, operates in Queensland, Australia, and has 2.62 billion mt in coal resources and 334 million mt in reserves. In the first half of this year, Harum produced 6.1 million mt of coal, 39.5% higher from the same period in 2011. The coal produc- tion came from its Mahakam and Santan mining sites only because the Tambang site has not begun production. Tambang is scheduled to begin operating at the end of this year and is expected to pro- duce about 1 million mt of coal. Xstrata Coal Confirms Job Cuts in Australia Xstrata Coal has confirmed it will cut contractor positions at its Oaky Creek mine in Queensland's Bowen Basin. It is the second coal company to reduce contractor numbers in central Queensland during October. According to ABC News, Xstrata Coal will not say how many positions will go at the mine north-west of Rockhampton, or if it will make changes to rosters. The company announced cuts to its Queensland and New South Wales operations in September, but would not break down which sites they would come from. NTPC Transloads Imports for Power Plants in India An ongoing crisis at Haldia Dock Complex has already started hav- ing an impact on industry in the region, according to The Times of India. Anticipating a dip in stocks, the National Thermal Power Corp. (NTPC) has started unloading imported thermal coal for its power plants at Farakka and Kahalgaon on barges from ships wait- ing at the Sandheads. The plan is to sail these barges to HDC, unload the thermal coal and transport them to the power plants. Russia to Build New Coal Terminal Marina Kovtun, governor of Murmansk Region, said Russia plans to build a new export terminal capable of shipping 18 million metric tons of coal a year via the Barents Sea by 2018, RIA Novostireport- ed. The Lavna terminal at the Murmansk Port will be built on the western coast of the Kolskiy bay to provide a cheaper route of coal shipments to Europe. The Murmansk port has obvious competitive advantages as it is a deepwater facility that has direct access to the sea and does not freeze. Coal Australia Signs Pact with Port in Queensland GVK, through its Hancock Coal subsidiary, signed a construction contract with leading international construction major, Samsung C&T; Corp., a subsidiary of the Korean conglomerate Samsung and Australian based Smithbridge Group Pty Ltd. to build a 60 million metric ton per year (mtpy) T3 Port Terminal Port for the Alpha Coal project at Abbot Point, North Queensland Australia. The award of construction contract comes after GVK received all the Tier 1 approvals for the Alpha Project. Continued on pg 10... 8 www.coalage.com Duke Energy Tests New Edwardsport Facility More than five years and $3 billion later, construction essentially is completed on the nation's newest and largest integrated gasifi- cation combined cycle (IGCC) power plant, and Duke Energy Indiana is testing the 618-mw Edwardsport facility with coal for the first time in preparation for its commercial startup in 2013. Since the Indiana Utility Regulatory Commission initially approved the project in November 2007, Edwardsport's journey has been long and winding and not without controversy. The baseload plant's estimated cost has increased by more than $1 billion from the $1.975 billion originally endorsed by the IURC. Several high-ranking state and Duke officials lost their jobs in an ethics scandal involving the project. Edwardsport has enjoyed strong support from Indiana Governor Mitch Daniels and the coal industry, which views IGCC technology and its potential to capture carbon dioxide emissions as providing a necessary roadmap for future coal plants in the United States. Duke spokeswoman Angeline Protogere said Edwardsport's late October coal testing represented an important step to help- ing the company determine when the plant can be connected commercially to the grid and begin generating electricity full time. Duke had hoped that would happen by this fall, but the timetable has been pushed back to sometime next year—the company is not saying exactly when. Prior to the coal testing, the plant successfully produced elec- tricity using natural gas. When coal is converted into a synthetic gas, it is sent to the gas turbines where it is burned to make elec- tricity. However, if the syngas does not meet certain standards, it is diverted to the gas flare tower on the plant property in rural Knox County, where it is ignited and burned safely. The gas flare also is used during each startup and shutdown of the plant. Edwardsport Plant Manager Jack Stultz cautioned area residents that when the flare is activated, it does not mean there is an emer- gency at the plant. Gas flare events are expected during the testing and startup process over the next several months, he said. The plant also will use the flare during regular commercial service, but it should not be as frequent as during testing and startup. Edwardsport marks the first new coal-based power plant built in Indiana in several decades and is a key part of Duke's effort to mod- ernize the state's aging electric system. A 160-mw, half-century-old coal plant at the site was taken out of service during the past year. Duke Energy Indiana, a subsidiary of Charlotte, N.C.-based Duke Energy, owns about 6,800 mw of generating capacity, mostly coal- fired, and is the Midwestern state's largest electric utility with more than 750,000 customers. Novadx, Sandstorm Acquire Additional Assets in U.S. Novadx Ventures and Sandstorm Metals & Energy has acquired properties located in Campbell and Scott Counties, Tenn., gener- ally known as Mine 12, the Turley loadout and the Smokey Junction prep plant, which are located near the company's Rex No. 1 mine. The properties were purchased from Premium Coal Co. and National Coal, subsidiary companies of Justice Corp., for an aggregate value of $8.5 million. Mine 12 is permitted to produce in the Rex seam and is con- tiguous with the company's existing Rex coal reserves. It will pro- vide a second entry, extend mine life, and position the company for future expansion and extended mine life. The combination of November 2012