PGN officials fined for breach of duty on pipeline project

Following the sanctions imposed on PT Perusahaan Gas Negara (PGN) last month, the Capital Market Supervisory Agency (Bapepam) handed total fines worth Rp 5 billion (some US$545,000) to four PGN directors and a commissioner Tuesday for breach of the duty to disclose information to the public.

Bapepam found the directors guilty of delaying the disclosure of essential information on problems with a pipeline project, said a Bapepam press statement.

Bapepam chairman Fuad Rahmany said in the statement that there had also been a misleading report on a plan to transmit gas through the South Sumatra-West Java pipeline (SSWJ), which the directors should have noticed.

Accordingly, Bapepam ordered PGN to pay an additional Rp 35 million. Four PGN directors including president director Sutikno and a commissioner were also ordered to pay total fines worth Rp 5 billion. Besides president director Sutikno, those sanctioned were directors Adil Abas, Djoko Pramono and Nursubagjo Prijono, and commissioner WMP Simanjuntak.

Last month, the company was also found guilty of an administrative violation related to the SSWJ disclosure breach, and was fined Rp 500 million.

After nearly four months of delay, PGN finally launched its $1.1 billion pipeline linking Sumatra and Java last Sunday. (*)