OPIC claim needs House approval: Govt
Tuesday, August 1 2000 - 03:30 AM WIB
The government needs approval from the House of Representatives to settle an outstanding US$290 million claim made by the U.S. government's Overseas Private Investment Corp. (OPIC), Minister of Finance Bambang Sudibyo said on Sunday.
Bambang said approval from the House was necessary to settle the claim because the amount was too high and payment of it could affect the state budget.
"What is clear is that I don't have the authority to settle a claim for such an amount," Bambang told The Jakarta Post on a flight back from Manado, North Sulawesi.
The minister visited several cities around the country last week to dispense information on the planned implementation of regional autonomy.
U.S. Ambassador to Indonesia Robert Gelbard earlier said the negotiations between OPIC and state electricity company PT PLN on the claim were proceeding too slowly and that his government was losing patience.
Gelbard said the U.S. government might seize Indonesian state assets if PLN kept refusing to pay the claim.
"Go ahead and threaten us. You will not deal with me but with the state," Bambang said when asked for comments on Gelbard's statement.
OPIC's claim follows PLN's inability to pay independent power producer MidAmerican Energy Holding, formerly known as CalEnergy, $572 million in compensation as ordered by an independent arbitration panel. (*)