Newmont Nusa Tenggara's total debts reach US$1.05 billion

PT Newmont Nusa Tenggara (NNT), Indonesia's second largest cooper and gold producer after Freeport Indonesia, had total debts of about US$1.05 billion as of 2004, Investor Daily reported on Monday.

NTT's financial director Dan Desjardins, said in Sumbawa last week that about US$400 million of the total amount were obtained from its major shareholders Newmont Mining Corporation and Sumitomo of Japan, while the remaining US$650 million came from a consortium of banks including Exim Bank of the United States and Exim Bank of Japan.

"We hope all the long-term debts could be repaid up until 2012," he was quoted as saying.

PT NTT which operates a large copper and gold mine in Batu Hijau in the island of Sumbawa, produced about 718 million pounds of copper concentrate and 719,000 ounces of gold in 2004. During the year the company booked total sales of about US$900 million from the copper production, and about US$235 million from gold production.

This year, NTT expects to produces between 650 million and 700 million pounds of copper and between 750,000 and 800,000 ounces of gold. In 2005, the company projects to book US$850 million in copper exports, and about US$200 million in gold exports.

PT NNT exports its copper concentrate to among others Japan, South Korea, China, the Philippines, Germany and Finland. The company which also supplies the Gresik refinery plant in East Java. It exports about 250,000 tons of copper concentrate a day. (*)