Hero reschedules $25m debt

Hero reschedules $25m debt

JAKARTA (JP): Publicly listed PT Hero Supermarket announced on
Wednesday the extension of the maturity of its US$25 million debt
to June 2002.

Hero president and CEO Ipung Kurnia said in a statement that
the company had negotiated the average interest rate cost of
between 2.5 and 3 percentage points above the Singapore interbank
offered rate (Sibor) after withholding tax.

This means Hero's average borrowing cost is between 15 percent
and 16 percent a year after hedging, he said.

"We are comfortable with Hero's current level of debt of $25
million, which is 80 percent hedged," Ipung said.

The food retailer has 69 supermarkets and 63 specialty stores
across Indonesia. (10)