Potential buyers of Antam?s bond mostly local investors

Most of the potential buyers of Antam?s bonds are local investors despite the fact the bonds are to be issued in Singapore, Bisnis Indonesia reported on Tuesday.

?Based on the estimate made during the book building process, 75 percent of the potential buyers of the bond are local investors while the others come from Hong Kong and Singapore,? a source told the daily about the prospect of Antam?s bonds.

The bonds will be traded on the Singapore Exchange Securities Trading Ltd. (SGX-ST)

The source said that the firm will set the coupon rate of the bonds on Sept. 12 at between 7.75 percent and 7.875 percent. Initially, the firm expected to set the rate at between 7.75 percent and 8 percent.

Antam expects to raise between US$200 million to $275 million from the issuance of the bond which mature in 2010. The bonds, which will be issued by Antam Finance Limited, will offer a buy back option beginning 2007.

Antam will use proceeds from the bonds to partly finance the construction of its third ferronickel plant FeNi III and its power plant that will cost the company between US$360 million and US$380 million. The company will also use its own funds to finance the project. (*)