At one of the world’s largest coal mines in the Indonesian province of South Kalimantan, enough of the fossil fuel is being stolen every three days to fill a vessel almost the size of the Chrysler Building, according to two people with knowledge of the situation.
The illegal shipments are undermining global prices for thermal coal, already near a four-year low, and have prompted a London-listed stakeholder in the Arutmin mine run by Jakarta-based PT Bumi Resources to ask its lawyers to review the claims. The people who discussed the thefts with Bloomberg asked not to be identified because the details aren’t public.
