United Tractors' mining operation contributing increased output

Heavyweight equipment provider PT United Tractors Tbk booked a total sales of Rp 3.54 trillion in the first semesters of this year, up 53 percent from Rp 2.32 trillion recorded in the same period of last year, DetikCom Internet news service reported on Thursday.

United Tractor finance manager Tjandrawati Waas said in a statement to the Jakarta Stock Exchange on Thursday the construction division contributed 42.3 percent to the company's total sales, while the remaining came from, among others, its mining contraction services.

Mining subsidiary company PT Pamapersada Nusantara has produced a total of 11.4 million tons of coal and 52.2 million BCM of overburden in the first half of this year, an increase from 11.5 million tons of coal and 39.8 million BCM of overburden in the same period of last year.

The company's gold division mined a total of 0.6 million tons of gold ore and 4.2 million BCM of waste, and its coal subsidiary PT Berau Coal recorded RP 570.39 billion in earnings in the first semester of this year, up 124.2 percent from the same period of last year.

Tjandrawati said UNTR decided to delay the initial public offering (IPO) of shares of Pamapersada Nusantara due to the weak market performance.

The company initially planned to float Pamapersada shares through the stock market this year. Proceeds from the IPO would be used to pay United Tractors' debt of US$100 million that will come due next year. (*)