Kuwait to lend US$50 million to RI

Kuwait to lend US$50 million to RI

JAKARTA (JP): The Kuwait government announced on Monday its
intention to provide Indonesia with some US$50 million in soft
loan to help finance the country's development projects.

The Kuwait Embassy in Jakarta said in a brief statement that
the soft loan was part of Kuwait's efforts to boost bilateral
ties between the two countries.

The statement also said that Ambassador Jamal Al Nesafi had
met with President Megawati Soekarnoputri on Friday.

It didn't provide any details or timetable on when the loan
would be disbursed.

Indonesia needs foreign assistance to help lift the country
out of its current economic difficulties. The government is
expected to secure a massive loan commitment from the
Consultative Group on Indonesia (CGI) next month to help finance
the 2002 state budget.

Elsewhere, the embassy said that Kuwait would help construct
15 new villages for the Indonesian refugees, each village would
consist of 50 people, two classrooms, one clinic and one mosque.

Apart from the loan commitment, the embassy said, Kuwait had
also pledged to extend its investments in Indonesia, particularly
in the oil and gas industry, through its state firm Kuwait
Foreign Petroleum Exploration Company (KUFPEC).

So far, KUFPEC has invested about $1.25b in natural gas
exploration in the Natuna Sea and on Seram island in Maluku.

Last year, KUFPEC discovered natural gas in Natuna Sea Block
A, which would be exported to Singapore via a 640 kilometer (400
mile) underwater pipeline.

KUFPEC has a one-third stake in the major exploration deal in
Indonesia, while operator Premier Oil Natuna Sea Ltd. has the
remainder.(iwa)