PTBA awaiting cabinet’s say over plan to buy KPC shares
Wednesday, October 22 2003 - 08:26 AM WIB
Several days ago PTBA sent a letter to the inter-ministerial team tasked with handling matters related to the divestment of KPC shares, PTBA corporate secretary Milawarma said.
Milawarma however refused to mention the contents of the letter.
“Mr. Djoko and his team will deliberate what we propose through the letter, and the cabinet will look into the matter. So, we will just wait,” he said. He was referring to Djoko Dharmono, secretary general of the Ministry of Energy and Mineral Resources, who chairs the inter-ministerial team.
The government last year nominated PTBA to buy 20 percent of KPC shares, and the East Kalimantan provincial administration to purchase 31 percent of KPC shares.
KPC’s contract with the government obliges it to divest up to 51 percent of its shares to Indonesian investors. Company shareholders and the government agreed on a US$822 million valuation of the entire shares of KPC.
The share divestment could not be completed early this year as planned among others due to disagreement over pricing.
Meanwhile, KPC shareholders Rio Tinto and BP Plc took the government and other parties by surprise in July when they announced that they had reached an agreement with Indonesian company PT Bumi Resources Tbk to sell to it their entire shares in KPC. The shares were valued at $500 million only.
Bumi completed payment for KPC shares this month.
Bumi however promised to divest 51 percent of KPC shares to Indonesian investors in compliance with KPC’s contractual obligations.
It has just reached an agreement to sell 18.6 percent of KPC shares to East Kutai regency administration.
KPC, Indonesia’s most profitable coal producer, operates a huge coalmine in East Kutai’s Sanggata district in East Kalimantan. (leo)