MANILA, April 21 (Reuters) - Philippine coal users can import coal from other countries including Australia, South Africa and Russia and source more locally if shipments from top supplier Indonesia are halted, company officials said on Thursday.
Two Indonesian coal ports have blocked ships from leaving to the Philippines due to safety concerns following a spate of ship hijackings in southern Philippines. The Indonesian Coal Mining Association expects more areas to suspend coal shipments to the Philippines. far we are not aware of any stopped shipments" from Indonesia, Luis Miguel Aboitiz, chief operating officer of Aboitiz Power Corp AP.PS . "We can get coal from Australia or South Africa but at higher cost," he told Reuters.
The Philippines imports 15 million tonnes of coal a year mainly for power plants, 70 percent of which is sourced from Indonesia.