Antam hopes to secure Hermes approval on FeNi III in March

State owned mining firm PT. Aneka Tambang Tbk (Antam) expects financial consultant Price Waterhouse Coopers (PwC) that is assigned by German credit insurance agency Hermes to evaluate Antam?s third FerroNickel (FeNi III) expansion project would complete its report by late March this year.

?We are hoping to secure approval from Hermes sometimes late March or April. After completing the legal works, we will hold shareholders? meeting in May. Construction of FeNi III is expected to commence after that,? Dohar Siregar, Antam corporate secretary told Petromindo.Com on Friday.

Approval from Hermes to provide insurance coverage for the major part of the foreign debt funding of the commercial loans provided for the Engineering Procurement and Construction (EPC) contracts is the precondition for the project.

The planned investment for the smelter and power unit will be financed with the Hermes-covered structured loan from German bank IKB Deutsche Industriebank AG, the proceeds of the company's 1997 initial public offering (IPO), and a consortium of local banks led by Bank Mandiri.

Total investment needed for the plant is estimated at US$250 million.

FeNi III will double Antam?s total production capacity to 26,000 tons per year. The plant, which will be located in Pomalaa, South East Sulawesi, is scheduled to start commercial production in 2005. (alex)