Govt reaffirms refusal for firm to go public
JAKARTA (JP): The Ministry of Forestry has reaffirmed its preliminary decision that prohibits PT Artika Optima Inti (AOI), a subsidiary of the Djajanti Group, to list its shares on the stock exchange.
The head of the ministry's public relations office, Kardjono Kadarsin, issued that statement yesterday in response to an article in the Singapore-based Business Times daily (April 30-May 1.)
This article quoted PT Peregrine Sewu Securities, the lead underwriter for the planned share issuance, as saying that AOI would go ahead with its planned public share offering this month.
Kardjono said the ministry did not give its recommendation to AOI because it had bought illegally-cut timber and been fined Rp 1.6 billion (US$747,663) for that violation. He expressed his doubts about whether the public would be willing to buy shares from a company that obtained its raw materials illegally.
He also said that AOI's request had been turned down because the company is still is having problems constructing their industrial estate and obtaining raw materials for its wood processing unit.
Kardjono said that Minister of Forestry, Djamaloedin Soeryohadikoesoemo, is working through the director general of forest management to make sure that the ministry's local offices in Maluku and East Java check the origins of the logs delivered to AOI's and PT Nusantara Plywood's wood processing units.
The minister will also ask Nusantara Plywood and AOI to immediately report suppliers of logs which are not affiliated with the group.
Nusantara Plywood is also a subsidiary of the Djajanti Group.
Reports
The minister has requested full reports from all the groups of forest concessionaires whose industrial capacity is much larger than what they are allowed to cut annually.
To solve this problem as soon as possible, the ministry of forestry will send an audit team to AOI.
The Corporate Finance Executive of Peregrine Imamat Dalimunthe was quoted by the Business Times as saying that he had received instructions from an AOI director to continue taking the necessary steps to prepare AOI's listing. This includes keeping up with the necessary paperwork and holding regular meetings with officials of the Capital Market Supervisory Board (Bapepam).
Senior AOI and Peregrine executives, who are currently overseas to promote the public offering, are scheduled to meet with Minister of Forestry Djamaloedin Soeryohadikoesoemo this weekend.
Although one industry observer has said that AOI's operations aren't so bad -- and were actually similar to those of PT Sumalindo and PT Barito Pacific which had gone public -- a forest consultant told the Jakarta Post that AOI's forest concessions are in poor condition.
The company plans to raise between Rp 400 billion to Rp 500 billion from the share offerings scheduled for May 18 to May 20. The shares will be listed on the Jakarta Stock Exchange and Surabaya Stock Exchange on June 22. (10)