Ancol to sell 15 percent of shares via IPO

Tony Hotland, Jakarta

Recreation park operator PT Pembangunan Jaya Ancol (PJA) will sell up to 15 percent of its shares through an initial public offering (IPO) in June, hoping to raise up to Rp 150 billion (US$16.66 million) to help finance expansion programs.

"We will sell about 127 million shares, but we haven't decided on the exact price per share yet. It will range from Rp 975 to Rp 1,325 with a current nominal value of Rp 500," PJA president director Budi Karya Sumadi told a press conference on Tuesday.

PJA plans to conduct a book-building process from May 26 to June 4 to decide on the price, before holding the IPO from June 21 to June 23. It expects the shares to be listed on the Jakarta Stock Exchange on June 28.

Budi said that 70 percent of the proceeds would be used to complete land reclamation for constructing housing and developing new features such as the Carnaval Beach Club, an entertainment and water sports center.

"And the rest is to inject funds into our subsidiary, the Ancol Dreamland Park, for park and beach revitalization. All these plans will be conducted step by step," he added.

The company, which focuses on the real estate and leisure sectors, is also proposing taking out a total of Rp 40 billion in loans from Bank DKI to help bring its programs to fruition.

"We have confidence in the property sector, particularly housing, as the earnings are high. And the return of investment is also great, both for the investors and buyers," said Budi.

PJA is 80 percent owned by the Jakarta administration and 20 percent by PT Pembangunan Jaya. After the IPO, the Jakarta administration will hold 68 percent of the shares, Pembangunan Jaya 17 percent, and the investing public 15 percent.

Budi said that PJA planned to allocate 30 percent of net profit as dividends.

"But it depends on the financial performance and the shareholders meeting," he said.

The director of PT Danareksa Sekuritas, Wahzary Wardaya, said that there were already a number of interested investors. Danareksa has been appointed by the Ancol management as the underwriter for the IPO.

For 2004, PJA hopes to make revenues of Rp 556.94 billion. It booked Rp 434.42 billion in revenue last year, up from Rp 380.82 billion in 2002.

Profits also surged to Rp 201.17 billion in 2003 from Rp 196 billion in 2002.

One of the most popular recreational venues in the country, the Ancol Dreamland Park had 10.5 million visitors last year generating a total of Rp 85.62 billion in revenue.