Antam seeks financial support to develop bauxite project in Kalimantan

Diversified mining company PT Antam Tbk is seeking financial support to speed up the development of its bauxite mining project in Alumina Tayan, West Kalimantan which is estimated to cost the company about US$180 million, Bisnis Indonesia reported on Wednesday.

"We are seeking financial support to speed up the development of the bauxite project, so that strategic investors who have expressed keen interest to join the project would make their firm commitment," Antam?s President Director Dedi Aditya Sumanagara said in Jakarta on Tuesday.

He said that the bauxite project in addition to the planned construction of the company?s third ferronickel processing plant was expected to give a significant contribution to Antam?s future earnings. According to him, a number of investors including those from Japan have expressed their interest to join the bauxite project as strategic partners.

"The Japanese investors are still waiting for the issuance of a new mining law which will be implemented in line with the autonomy law," he said.

Antam has received a firm commitment from IKB Hermes to obtain export credit from the German financial institution to finance the construction of its third ferro nickel plant (FeNi III), which is expected to double the company?s nickel production capacity to 26,000 per year.

The plant which will be located in Pomalaa, South East Sulawesi, is scheduled to start commercial production in 2005. (*)