CMNP demands explanation from IBRA on JORR project

JAKARTA (JP): Publicly listed toll road operator PT Citra Marga Nusaphala Persada said it was demanding an explanation from the Indonesian Bank Restructuring Agency (IBRA) on the agency's refusal to allow it to participate in the upcoming tender for the Jakarta Outer Ring Road (JORR) project.

"We want to be sure whether it's true that the company cannot participate in the tender," CMNP president Deddy Hariadi said on Tuesday in a news conference.

He said his company had made the request for clarification to PT Jalantol Lingkarluar Jakarta, which is a joint venture between the agency and state-owned toll road operator PT Jasa Marga.

Jalantol took over the undertaking and sought investors capable of resuming the project, which has been suspended since 1998.

The project aims at easing traffic congestion in Jakarta by linking all outlying areas of the capital with a 69.3 kilometer road.

It was originally constructed by PT Citra Bhakti Margatama Persada, PT Citra Mataram Satriamarga Persada and PT Marga Nurindo Bhakti, under a build-operate-transfer scheme with Jasa Marga.

But loans worth Rp 1 trillion (about US$89 million) from local banks to finance the project turned sour after the economic crisis in 1997 forced the government to suspend the project.

It fell into IBRA's hands when the agency took over the bad loans from local banks.

IBRA plans to open the tender for the project in July, and several foreign investors have reportedly lined up.

It denied Citra Marga Nusaphala Persada's participation, as the company is linked to former president Soeharto's daughter Siti Hardiyanti Rukmana, to whom the three previous constructors had belonged.

IBRA's regulation also prevents companies or individuals with bad loans under the agency from participating in its asset sales.

Minister of Settlement and Regional Infrastructure Erna Witoelar has also said Citra Marga Nusapahala Persada's presence in the upcoming tender would only spur controversy.

However, Deddy questioned the policy. He said Rukmana's stake in the company through PT Citra Lamtoro Gung Persada was insignificant.

Rukmana, through her company PT Citra Lamtoro Gung Persada, owns a 2.43 percent stake in Citra Marga Nusaphala Persada, with the majority of 39.58 percent belonging to the investing public.

"So it is totally irrelevant to tie up the tender process with the ownership of Siti Hardiyanti Indra Rukmana. We are a publicly listed company, and we are ready to join the JORR tender," he argued. (bkm)