Bidders for 40% stake in Astra announced
JAKARTA (JP): The Indonesian Bank Restructuring Agency (IBRA) named on Wednesday three consortia of bidders qualified to buy a 40 percent stake in the country's largest automaker Astra International.
The three consortia are Singaporean auto distributor Cycle & Carriage (C&C) Limited Consortium with partners Batavia Investment Management and JP Morgan International Capital; American consortium comprising Gilbert Global Equity Partners, Newbridge Asia II, Chase Asia Equity and Saratoga Investama Sedaya; and Lazard Consortium of France.
The Government of Singapore Investment Corporation (GIC) has agreed to participate as a co-investor with each of the three consortia, IBRA said in a statement.
The participation was in line with the role that the government of Singapore intends to play in helping IBRA sell its assets as pledged by Prime Minister Goh Chok Tong to President Abdurrahman Wahid in January, 2000.
"We are greatly encouraged by the enthusiasm of investors. IBRA is committed to provide equal treatment to all bidders during the due diligence period and throughout the sale process," IBRA chairman Cacuk Sudarjianto said.
Cacuk earlier said IBRA controlled a 45 percent stake in Astra but in the statement he said the share controlled by the agency was only 40 percent. The shares were obtained by the agency through debt-settlement with the previous shareholders of Astra.
Cacuk said IBRA contacted over 60 investors on the Astra sale and 14 investors in four consortia submitted their written interest.
Three of the four consortia met the selection criteria made by IBRA, including preliminary bid price, financial capacity of bidders, suitability of bidders and others, he said. He did not mention the fourth failed consortium.
He said the three bidders would be allowed to conduct due diligence over a three-week period beginning Monday.
The due diligence process will be conducted concurrently by the bidders and will be comprised of data room review, management meetings and site visits.
Final bids including submission of definitive transaction documentation will due within one week after due diligence has been completed.
"IBRA expects to select and announce the winning bidder and close the transaction by the end of March, 2000," Cacuk said.
In December, 1999, IBRA chose the Gilbert-Newbridge consortium as the preferred bidder for the former's stake in the company with the bid proposal of Rp 3,750 per share (around 50 US cents).
But, it failed to realize the plan following its inability to conduct a due diligence on the automaker and its failure to pay a 30 percent up-front payment by the deadline.
Astra's previous management led by Rini Soewandi reportedly obstructed Gilbert-Newbridge's from conducting due diligence in protest over IBRA's deal.
Lazard Asia Fund, a unit of France's Lazard Freres & Co, later stepped in the acquisition battle with a price offering of Rp 4,000 per share for the Astra sale.
IBRA is expected to raise Rp 3 trillion from the Astra sale to meet its target of raising Rp 17 trillion to help finance the current state budget ending March 31.
Separately, Reuters quoted C&C as saying on Tuesday in Singapore it was seeking to buy 20 percent of Astra in a deal likely to be worth over S$400 million (US$234 million).
C&C said it submitted the bid to take a 20 percent stake in PT Astra on Monday as the single largest investor and lead member in a four-member consortium bidding to acquire a total interest of 30.4 to 40.6 percent in the Indonesian firm.
C&C's Finance Director, Neville Venter, said C&C would not want a stake of less than 20 percent in PT Astra, and said a 20 percent stake was worth S$400 million to S$500 million.
Asked how the firm would finance the purchase, Venter said C&C had low debt to equity gearing and some cash, but would also need to make bank borrowings.
"On balance, we need to borrow," he said. "We have in excess of S$100 million cash on hand."
C&C distributes Mercedes Benz, Mitsubishi, Kia and Proton vehicles in Singapore. (jsk)