It's not Barito we're after, Forestry Ministry says<\/p>\n
JAKARTA (JP): The government corrected a statement made by the
\nMinister of Forestry on Wednesday, in which he threatened to take
\nover 49 percent of PT Barito Pacific Timber's forest concessions.<\/p>\n
Minister Djamaloedin Soeryohadikoesoemo said on Wednesday that
\nBarito Pacific Timber, the largest company listed on the Jakarta
\nStock Exchange, had "poorly managed" its concessions and would
\nhave to surrender 49 percent of its shares in order to have its
\nforest concessions renewed.<\/p>\n
However, the ministry yesterday virtually retracted the
\nofficial threat against Barito.<\/p>\n
"It is not Barito we're after but the forest concessions of PT
\nAya Timber and PT Yayang Indonesia in South Kalimantan, which
\nsupply logs to Barito's wood mills," read a press statement
\nissued yesterday by the ministry's acting secretary general, T.
\nSarijanto. This statement served to clarify Barito's explanation,
\nissued Wednesday evening, that Barito's relations with the two
\ncompanies were limited to log-supply contracts.<\/p>\n
The statement issued yesterday did not mention anything about
\nBarito's problems with its own 2.2 million hectare forest
\nconcessions. However, it disclosed that the ministry had settled
\nthe problem with PT Aya and PT Yayang by extending the permits of
\ntheir forest concessions -- under the condition that a state
\nforest company would take over 49 percent of their respective
\nequity shares.<\/p>\n
"Actually, the two concessions should have been revoked, and
\nthey would have had it not been for their log-supply contracts
\nwith Barito," the minister said.<\/p>\n
No reaction<\/p>\n
Surprisingly, the Jakarta Stock Exchange did not react at all
\nto Djamaloedin's remarks about Barito, which made headlines in
\nmany newspapers yesterday morning.<\/p>\n
Barito's shares, which closed at Rp 7,700 on Wednesday, even
\nrose to Rp 7,850 at the close of the market yesterday, perhaps
\nbecause of the immediate clarification issued by Sarijanto.<\/p>\n
A broker of PT Gadjah Tunggal DBS Securities said yesterday
\nthat Barito's immediate rebuttal of Djamaloedin's statement,
\nwhich was issued on Wednesday evening and quoted by the mass
\nmedia, was partly responsible for preventing a price fall.<\/p>\n
Meanwhile, economist Kwik Kian Gie told The Jakarta Post that
\nthe ministry's latest move proved that Minister Djamaloedin is a
\n"consistent and wise man."<\/p>\n
"It shows that he walks his talk," he said. "He could simply
\nrefuse to renew the concessions and completely take over the
\nmanagement of the two companies."<\/p>\n
Kwik, however, also warned that the controversy revealed the
\ninherent weakness of publicly-traded timber companies.<\/p>\n
"Barito's success rests largely on in its forest concessions,"
\nhe said, adding that "there is no legal guarantee that the
\ngovernment will keep renewing the concessions."<\/p>\n
In a related development, Bimantara Group executive Peter
\nGontha yesterday appealed to reporters to refrain from writing
\nnews that might damage foreign investor confidence in Barito.<\/p>\n
Bimantara, owned by one of President Soeharto's sons, is a co-
\nowner with Prajogo Pangestu, Chairman of the Barito Pacific
\nGroup, of the $1.3 billion Chandra Asri olefin plant project in
\nAnyer, West Java. (hdj\/als\/dlz)<\/p>\n
Editorial -- Page 4<\/p>", "url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/its-not-barito-were-after-forestry-ministry-says-1447893297", "image": "" }, "sponsor": "Okusi Associates", "sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com" }