Gas firm gets loan

JAKARTA (JP): The state-owned gas company Perum Gas Negara and the European Investment Bank have signed a Rp 138 billion (US$62.72 million) loan agreement for the construction of a natural gas pipeline from South Sumatra to the central part of the island.

The European Commission's representation office said in a statement yesterday that the agreement was recently signed in Brussels by Indonesian Ambassador to Belgium and Luxembourg Sabana Kartasasmita, Perum Gas Negara's president Qoyum Tjandranegara, and an executive of European Investment Bank, Rudolf de Korte.

The pipeline is part of a project for gas exploration and production in Sumatra, which is co-financed by the Asian Development Bank and the Exim Bank of Japan. (04)