Semen Gresik to give Rp 182.2b in dividends<\/p>\n
Rendi A. Witular, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta<\/p>\n
Shareholders of PT Semen Gresik, the country's largest cement
\nmaker, agreed late on Monday to allocate 35 percent of last
\nyear's Rp 521 billion net profit as dividends, or Rp 182.2
\nbillion (US$18.91 million); equal to Rp 307.18 per share.<\/p>\n
The company's president director Satrio said on the sidelines
\nof the company's shareholders meeting that the state-owned firm
\ncould not provide a bigger dividend for its shareholders.<\/p>\n
"Semen Gresik still needs financial support for the company's
\nplans in the near future," he said.<\/p>\n
Satrio explained that the state-owned company would need some
\nof the profit to pay bonds worth Rp 447 billion, due to mature in
\nJuly 2006.<\/p>\n
He also said that Semen Gresik had to pay Rp 125 billion in
\ndebt to the government, owed by its South Sulawesi-based
\nsubsidiary Semen Tonasa.<\/p>\n
Semen Gresik would also need $350 million to build a plant in
\nCentral Java, Satrio said, but no details were available as to
\nwhere the plant would be located. Satrio had said earlier that
\nthe construction of the new plant would take between three and
\nfour years to build before coming onstream.<\/p>\n
The firm previously said it would construct the new plant in
\nSukabumi, West Java, or near Pacitan, East Java, with an
\ninstalled capacity of between 2.5 million and three million tons
\nper year, after a projected shortfall in cement supply in 2007
\ndue to the high demand from government-driven infrastructure
\nprojects.<\/p>\n
The company's forecast of a cement shortage in 2007 is earlier
\nthan its previous prediction of 2010. The firm did not include in
\nits original forecast the expected increased demand for cement
\narising out of the major infrastructure projects offered by the
\ngovernment to local and overseas investors at January's
\nInfrastructure Summit.<\/p>\n
The government has estimated that investment in infrastructure
\n-- including roads, airports and seaports -- will surpass $150
\nbillion in the next five years, with the bulk of the money coming
\nfrom the private sector.<\/p>\n
Satrio had said earlier this year that cement producers would
\nbe able to keep up with the demand for the immediate future as
\nmost of the projects were unlikely to start this year or next due
\nto regulatory constraints.<\/p>\n
At present, the industry's installed capacity stands at 45
\nmillion tons per year, with cement expected to reach some 33
\nmillion tons this year, up from 30.5 million tons last year.<\/p>\n
Semen Gresik production now accounts for some 44 percent of
\nthe country's cement supply. Apart from Semen Tonasa, the company
\nalso has subsidiary PT Semen Padang in West Sumatra.<\/p>\n
At present, the firm is utilizing all of its installed
\ncapacity of some 6.9 million tons. However, with some
\nmodification of its plants, the company expects to be able to
\nproduce up to 7.5 million tons this year.<\/p>\n
Meanwhile, Semen Padang and Semen Tonasa are utilizing between
\n85 percent and 90 percent of their installed capacities, which
\nstand at 5.24 million and 3.48 million tons respectively.<\/p>",
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