$150m from Marubeni to CA

$150m from Marubeni to CA

TOKYO (Reuters): Japanese trading house Marubeni Corp said yesterday it had extended a loan worth $150 million in February to a petrochemical joint venture in Indonesia.

A Marubeni spokesman said the loan was to help the venture, PT Chandra Asri, meet its debt repayment obligations.

The joint venture, Indonesia's sole olefin plant, started operations in 1995, he said, adding that it is 23.8 percent owned by a Japanese consortium led by Marubeni, and the remaining 76.2 percent is held by Indonesian firms.

Chandra Asri has been hit by declining demand at home as well as by falling market prices for petrochemical products, the Marubeni spokesman said.