Antam begins good corporate governance project

State miner PT Aneka Tambang Tbk announced Wednesday the inception of its good corporate governance implementation project. A well attended kick off meeting was held July 26, 2001 at Antam's offices to formerly begin the assessment and evaluation phase, which is expected to be completed at the latest by early October.

According to the company?s statement, the evaluation is being directed by a ten-person team from international consultants Ernst & Young, who will work closely with a team of counterparts from Antam.

The assessment, said the statement, would focus on the pillars of good corporate governance: transparency and disclosure, independence, accountability and responsibility.

The evaluation takes into consideration ten key elements, which include such areas as the roles of the Boards, management reports, and risk management and will be evaluated using questionnaires and one on one interviews.

"Antam has taken an important step towards achieving its vision for 2010 of being a world class company. We see long-term benefits for our shareholders in ensuring that Antam is not only profitable but also responsible. In the short term implementing good corporate governance principles will provide Antam a clear competitive advantage." said D Aditya Sumanagara, the company?s president director. (alex)