On Monday Indonesian authorities said they had given the go-ahead for 14 bulkers loaded with coal to depart. Two days later none have left.

Those ships are still waiting for their clearance paperwork, according to a report by Reuters on Wednesday.

Meanwhile, a government review on the possibility of removing the coal ban in a step-by-step manner continued into the Asian afternoon.

Explaining the lack of movement, shipping agents in the country told TradeWinds that while Coordinating Minister of Maritime and Investment Affairs Luhut Pandjaitan had said on Monday that these ships would be able to depart, local officials responsible for issuing sailing permits are insisting on formal notification from the Ministry of Transport.

That notification is expected to come after the ministerial review wraps up on Wednesday evening.

The coal export ban was implemented without notice on 1 January due to a serious shortage of coal at the power plants operated by state-owned power utility Perusahaan Listrik Negara (PLN).

Government officials have accused miners of not delivering on their Domestic Market Obligation quotas.

While a supply agreement between the top mining companies and PLN was hashed out shortly after the export ban went into force, discussions have since centred on the logistics problems — the Indonesian-flagged bulker fleet does not have a sufficient capacity to meet PLN's coal shipment needs.

On Monday, Indonesia's Sea Communications Department under the Ministry of Communication sent out a rallying call to the country's shipowners asking them to send all available bulkers and barges to load coal for distribution to power stations.