Berlian needs $170m to buy vessels

Berlian needs $170m to buy vessels

JAKARTA: Publicly-listed shipping company PT Berlian Laju Tanker said it needs US$150 million to $170 million to purchase eight new ships.

The company said Friday that it would borrow around $90 million from banks in Germany and the Netherlands, while the remainder would come from bond issuance and internal cash flow.

In its audited 2002 financial report, Berlian's net profit dropped to Rp 106 billion ($11.91 million) from Rp 112 billion in 2001, while total sales increased to Rp 915 billion from Rp 879 billion.

The decline in net profit was due to higher operational costs and low freight rates.

The company also announced a dividend of Rp 12.5 per share for the year.

Berlian is Indonesia's largest sea transportation carrier for liquefied goods such as oil, LNG and petrochemicals. -- JP