Banks mull $400 million loans for oil and gas sector

At least 11 local banks have said that they are ready to provide US$400 million worth of loans to oil and gas companies to develop oil and gas fields belonging to state oil and gas company PT Pertamina, the Bisnis Indonesia reported in its Tuesday edition.

Indonesian Chamber of Commerce and Industry (KADIN) oil and gas sector upstream committee deputy chairman Alimin Abdullah said his organization is trying to get financial help from banks for several oil and gas companies which are working with the Pertamina.

These Pertamina’s fields, which are offered to 30 national oil and gas companies, are mainly those under technical assistance contract (TAC) and joint operation body (JOB) in South Sumatra, Papua and Kalimantan.

“If you ask me how much money these banks are going to provide, I will say it is a bank’s secret. But Pertamina is likely to need up to $400 million for JOB and TAC programs with these 30 companies,” Alimin said in Jakarta on Monday.

Among the banks that will provide loans are Bank Mandiri, Bank Syariah Mandiri, Bank Danamon, Bank Niaga, Bank Internasional Indonesia, Bank Negara Indonesia, Bank Rakyat Indonesia and Bank Muamalat. (godang)