Bribery allegation in Paiton project denied<\/p>\n
JAKARTA (JP): Tycoon Hashim Djojohadikusumo denied on Thursday
\nthat independent power producer PT Paiton Energy used bribery to
\nsecure its controversial power purchase contract with state-owned
\nelectricity company PT PLN.<\/p>\n
Hashim, who is president commissioner of Paiton, said he was
\nconcerned with the audit results of the Development Finance
\nComptroller (BPKP) which suggested that the company bribed
\nseveral top government officials and executives of PLN to secure
\nits contract in 1994.<\/p>\n
\"The report contains a lot of speculation rather than the
\nresults of a study based on reality and truth,\" Hashim said.<\/p>\n
In its audit results, the comptroller said former president
\nSoeharto, former mines and energy minister Ginandjar Kartasasmita
\nand IB Sudjana, former PLN president Zuhal could have received
\nbribes from Paiton.<\/p>\n
As such, it called on the government to check the bank
\naccounts of those mentioned.<\/p>\n
Other people suspected to have received the bribes included
\nformer investment minister Sanyoto Sastrowardoyo, former finance
\nminister JB Sumarlin and members of PLN's former team of
\nnegotiations for private power projects.<\/p>\n
The comptroller said it became suspicious of a possible
\nbribery after noticing in the company's financial report an item
\ncalled \"development cost,\" which it said was not clearly
\naccounted for by the company. The comptroller labeled the sum as
\n\"speedy money,\" or funds used to secure the contract.<\/p>\n
The comptroller has yet to make public the audit results, but
\ncopies have been made available to the media over the past two
\nweeks.<\/p>\n
The comptroller made the audit at the request of PLN.<\/p>\n
Hashim said the so-called development costs were legal and
\nPaiton clearly recorded the use of the money and the names of the
\ncompanies which received payment.<\/p>\n
Paiton's data said that of the US$38.2 million development
\ncost, $23.8 million was paid in fees to 13 legal consultants of
\nthe company's shareholders and lenders and another $711,859 to
\ntwo tax consultants.<\/p>\n
Paiton paid another $8.7 million to several banks for their
\nfinancial advice.<\/p>\n
The company also paid $1.28 million in fees to American
\nstrategy consultancy firm Kisingger & Assoc., $274,263 to labor
\nconsultant Corsavero Pty, $28,050 to information system
\nconsultant CSC, $81,216 to coal consultant Marston and $8,615 to
\nPadjadjaran University for an environmental study.<\/p>\n
Paiton also paid a total of $3.2 million to six engineering
\nservice companies.<\/p>\n
The comptroller also said that the price in the contract for
\nthe coal supplied by Hashim's company PT Adaro for Paiton's power
\nplant in Paiton, Probolinggo, East Java had been set too high.<\/p>\n
It said the price of coal hovered around $22 and $24 per ton
\nover the past three years, compared to $39.76 per ton for Adaro's
\ncoal in 1997.<\/p>\n
Hashim said the coal price quoted by BPKP was based on
\nfree-on-board (FOB) delivery, while the price set in the contract
\nfor Adaro's coal was based on the cost-and-freight (C&F
\ndelivery).<\/p>\n
The $39.76 per ton price also took into account a guarantee
\nfrom coal company BHP to supply coal for the power plant for 30
\nyears and an obligation from Adaro to always prepare coal stock
\nof 640,000 tons on Laut Island in South Kalimantan, Hashim said.<\/p>\n
Paiton's decision to select Adaro as a coal supplier was based
\non the fact that Adaro produces environmentally clean coal, he
\nadded.<\/p>\n
Hashim insisted that there were no irregularities in the
\nproject, pointing out that the lenders studied the project for 15
\nmonths before agreeing on the loan.<\/p>\n
Hashim acknowledged that he once sent a letter to Soeharto for
\nassurance that the project may go ahead, but he said he did so
\nbecause the then mines and energy minister, IB Sudjana, refused
\nto meet him.<\/p>\n
Paiton Energy is owned by Japan's Mitsui (32.5 percent),
\nEdison Mission of the United States (40 percent), General
\nElectric, also of the U.S. (12.5 percent) and local firm PT Batu
\nHitam Perkasa (15 percent), and is controlled by Hashim.<\/p>\n
The company has developed a 1,230 Megawatt (MW) coal-fired
\npower plant called Paiton Swasta I in Probolinggo, East Java and
\nit is worth $2.5 billion.<\/p>\n
Under the contract, Paiton sells its power to PLN at a price
\nbetween 5.5 cents and 8.5 cents per kilowatt hour (Kwh). This
\nprice is higher than the average of 6.4 cents per Kwh set by
\nother independent power producers and much higher than PLN's
\nselling price of Rp 240 (about 3 cents). (jsk)<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/bribery-allegation-in-paiton-project-denied-1447893297",
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