Pertamina secures $3 billion of standby loans

State-owned oil, gas firm PT Pertamina secured US$ 3 billion of standby loans from 13 financial institutions and local and overseas banks.

Pertamina?s Director of Finance Frederick ST Siahaan said that out of the figure, $ 2 billion would be allocated for capital expenditure (capex).

The funds will be used to finance upstream and downstream projects. ?Major part of the funds will earmarked to finance projects that will boost oil and gas output, facilitate the distribution of fuels and LPG and build more infrastructures,? Siahaan said in Jakarta Thursday.

With regard to Pertamina?s plan to buy tankers, Siahaan said that the company had yet to decide the number and the types of tankers that the company would purchase. ?We are still discussing it,? he said.

Currently, Pertamina operates 40 tankers, several of them are rented from shipping companies. ?We have allocated $ 60 million for the tankers. The funds sourced from internal money and third party will be used to buy or rent tankers,? he said.

Last year, Pertamina delayed a plan to raise $1 billion to develop Cepu block in Central and East Java because of the turmoil in the credit markets. Pertamina, Exxon had appointed BNP Paribas as advisor to raise financing to develop the block. (*)