Cokal Ltd (ASX:CKA) has achieved several development milestones to progress the ramp-up of production from the 266.6 million-tonne Bumi Barito Mineral (BBM) metallurgical coal project in Indonesia.

The Indonesian project is being progressed through a strategic partnership with Cratus.

The two parties have now formed an infrastructure joint venture (IJV) to focus on the development of transport and infrastructure solutions for the project.

Medium-term objectives for the pair include the acquisition of flat-bottomed vessels for coal transport via the Barito River to an intermediary coal stockpile at Buntock or the Taboneo Anchorage and the upgrading of site infrastructure and coal loading facilities at Cokal’s current jetties.

Two self-propelled coal vessels with onboard cranes (to load cargoes before the completion of upgrades to the Krajan Jetty) have already been obtained.

A shipyard has been appointed to facilitate the refitting required to meet the needs of the IJV and to ensure the vessels are ready for Indonesian classification. For the latter, Cratus’ strong connections to the BKI (Indonesian Classification Society) will be helpful.

An anticipated 18 custom-built self-propelled vessels will also be brought online to meet the exact specifications and requirements of the IJV. in particular, to meet that end, Cokal is seeking wider vessels with reduced draft. Each of these will take around three months to construct; the partners are hoping that using the custom-built approach will attract financing from shipyards.

Six weeks of work are expected for completion on the Krajan Jetty to accommodate the new vessels.

Cokal has been trading at 6 cents.

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