Bumi to issue US$220 million notes to buy KPC
Tuesday, September 30 2003 - 02:02 AM WIB
Bumi’s would ask for its shareholders’ approval of the plan during the company’s extraordinary shareholders meeting scheduled for Tuesday (today), the paper quoted a source as saying.
Bumi’s finance director Eddie J. Soebari confirmed the note issue plan, according to the paper.
The issue will bring the total funds to be raised by the Bumi group this year to $520 million as PT Arutmin Indonesia, which is controlled by Bumi, earlier announced that it would issue US$300 million worth of bonds.
In August, Arutmin’s management said the firm would use the proceeds from the bond issue among others to service its debts amounting to $292.8 million by end-March 2003.
Eddie was quoted by Bisnis as saying that Bumi would take some loans from banks and would use the proceeds from the issuance of medium-term notes and the bank loans to finance the acquisition of the entire stake owned by Rio Tinto and BP PLC in KPC.
He did not mention the amount of bank loans the company planned to borrow or which banks would provide the loans.
But earlier, Bumi’s management said it would appoint Credit Suisse First Boston and Singapore’s Union Overseas Bank as lead arrangers for the bank loans.
In July, both foreign firms signed a deal to sell their entire stake in KPC for $500 million and Bumi is given until October to execute the buyout. (*)