BA Asia to advise RI firm

BA Asia to advise RI firm

HONG KONG (Reuter): BankAmerica subsidiary BA Asia yesterday announced it has been named as financial adviser for a major US$700 million telecommunications project to build land-based telephone lines in Indonesia.

The project company, PT Aria West International, is a consortium headed by US West and including the Asian Infrastructure Fund and PT Artimas Kencana Murni.

The company has taken over the operation of approximately 450,000 telephone lines in West Java and will build and operate a further 500,000 lines in what is the largest private sector telecommunications project in Indonesia to date.

As financial adviser, "BA Asia will guide PT Aria West in setting up a financing strategy, which will include securing limited-recourse financing from international banks, equipment suppliers and other project lenders," said William Rathvon, BA Asia's vice president and head of Project Finance.