Banpu makes $54m loan to RI coal firm
Banpu makes $54m loan to RI coal firm
BANGKOK (Dow Jones): Thai coal company Banpu PCL on Thursday
said it's Singaporean unit has made a US$54 million convertible
loan to Indonesia's PT Centralink Wisesa International.
In a filing to the Stock Exchange of Thailand, Banpu said its
wholly-owned Banpu Minerals (Singapore) Ltd. unit on March 21
made the loan to support Centralink's bid to buy shares in two
companies that operate four coal mines in Indonesia.
The loan carries an interest rate of 2 percent and must be
repaid in four years; it can also be converted into shares up to
an equivalent of 95 percent of Centralink's share capital.
The loan will be used to purchase shares in PT Indotambangraya
Meghah and PT Ganda Upayatama, two companies that - under the
joint name of Indocoal - have concessions to operate four coal
mines in Indonesia.
If Banpu's loan is converted Centralink shares, the Thai
company's coal reserves and marketable coal supply will increase
to over 240 million metric tons from its current 60 million tons;
its productive capacity would expand to 12 million tons a year
from 6.8 million tons now; and the company would be able to
provide a greater variety of coal.
Banpu said it currently produces 3 million tons a year of coal
at its Jorong mine in Indonesia.
Banpu said the funds for the loan come from reserves earmarked
for investment in overseas coal mines, and from the divestment of
other assets.
Banpu's Chief Financial Officer Somruedee Somphong told
reporters the company's revenues are expected to rise 30 percent
in the year ending June 2001 from 4.4 billion baht the year
before, mainly on increased coal sales due to the high capacity
of its Indonesian mines.
Banpu recently agreed to provide a $54 million convertible
loan to PT Centralink Wisesa International, an Indonesian coal
company, to fund Centralink's purchase of Indocoal, a group of
Indonesian coal companies, from the Indonesian Bank Restructuring
Agency.
The loan will carry an interest rate of 2 percent and must be
repaid in four years, unless it's converted into shares up to an
equivalent of 95 percent of Centralink. If the loan is converted
into shares, Banpu's coal reserves and marketable coal supply
will increase to over 240 million metric tons from the current 60
million tons.
Banpu's chief financial officer Somruedee Somphong said the
conversion of loan into Centralink equity is still pending
approval from Indonesian authorities.
She said it could take up to 1-2 years before the company is
granted approval to convert its loan.
However, she doesn't think the Indonesian authorities will
object to the proposed plan, and there shouldn't be any problem
on the conversion issue.