Merchant in Petronas' bid

JAKARTA (JP): Malaysian Merchant Marine Sdn. Bhd., which PT Berlian Laju Tanker aims to acquire 20 percent of, plans to enter Petronas' tenders.

Kevin Wong, the corporate secretary of publicly listed Berlian Laju Tanker, said yesterday that, although it would bid, Merchant Marine had not yet received any orders from Petronas, the Malaysian state oil company.

Berlian's shareholders agreed at an extraordinary meeting Tuesday to buy a 20 percent stake in Merchant Marine for US$1.43 million.

Wong said Berlian would buy 2,757,286 shares for Rm1.32 (40 U.S cents) each.

Merchant Marine's net income increased to Rm4.6 million in 1996 from Rm3 million in 1995. Its profit is expected to increase to Rm6.2 million this year. (02)