Creditors approve Astra debt restructuring program
Creditors approve Astra debt restructuring program
JAKARTA (JP): Bank creditors and bondholders have approved
Astra International's final debt restructuring program presented
early this month, the company's president said on Thursday.
Rini M.S. Suwandi said the approval was received in reply
forms sent to the bank creditors and voting results from the
company's Rp 400 billion bondholders meeting held here on
Thursday.
"The approval reflects the positive progress on Astra
International's debt restructuring program that started since
August 5, 1998, following the economic crisis in the region,
including Indonesia, affecting the company's performance," she
said after the meeting.
Rini said about 63.96 percent of the total loans, excluding
the U.S. dollar bondholders, were consented to in the
restructuring program as of Thursday.
Total bank creditors which have already given their approval
reached 95.21 percent of Astra's total bank loans, or 57.58
percent from the company's total debts, while current total non-
bank loan, including bondholders, reached 6.38 percent of the
total company debt.
The Rp 400 billion (US$48 million) bondholders meeting in
Jakarta was one of four bondholders' meetings held simultaneously
on Thursday.
The company also held bondholders meeting for three types of
U.S. dollar-denominated bonds totaling $500 million in Singapore.
The three meetings were adjourned until May 14 because the
obligatory 75 percent quorum for voting could not be achieved.
Rini said the company was not surprised by the failure to
reach a quorum at the Singapore bondholders meeting citing that
fact many bondholders were located in different countries.
"The failure to attain a quorum today was simply a technical
matter because it involves tracking down the various bondholders
and informing them of this meeting,"
"As of Thursday, the bonds were actively exchanging hands,"
Rini said.
She said under the existing procedure, the next bondholders
meeting in Singapore will only need 25 percent of the bondholders
to turn out to meet the quorum obligation.
Rini said the company was optimistic of meeting the quorum
obligation in the next bondholders meeting because the number of
bondholders who turned out at the meeting in Singapore reached
more than 25 percent of the total bondholders.
The company is also optimistic the bondholders will approve
the debt restructuring program after it sounded out the views of
the bondholders who turned out for Thursday's meeting.
Rini said the company undertook all efforts to reach a
unanimous agreement from all the bank creditors and bondholders
with its debt restructuring program.
"However, if only a majority vote is achieved, Astra will
submit the debt composition plan to the (local) commercial court
for ratification which will bind all creditors," Rini said.
Astra, once one of Indonesia's most profitable and well-
managed conglomerates, was saddled with financial problems
following the fall of the rupiah's value in mid-1997.
Car sales, previously one of its core money earners,
significantly dropped in 1998 and are expected to decline further
in 1999 as Indonesia's economy remains stagnant.
The company finds it difficult to pay off its debt following
the rupiah's sharp depreciation.
Total Astra loans under the debt restructuring program,
including capitalized interest, are $1 billion and Rp 1 trillion,
about 65 percent of which are in the form of bank loans, both in
the U.S. dollar and rupiah, with the remaining in dollar and
rupiah-denominated bonds. (jsk)