Mobisel wins new loans

Mobisel wins new loans

JAKARTA (JP): PT Mobile Selular Indonesia (Mobisel), a private cellular telecommunications provider, signed agreements yesterday for Rp 75 billion (US$31.6 million) in loan facilities from 12 domestic banks led by PT Makindo Securities and Bank Umum Servitia.

Mobisel, which runs the Nordic Mobile Telephone (NMT-450i) system, will use the loans to expand its service nationwide.

Mobisel president Suprapto Pegeng said that 21,000 users, primarily in Jakarta, Tangerang and Bandung, had registered for the service. The company expects to have at least 76,000 users by the end of the year.

The company's executive advisor and chief financial officer, Carlson Smith, said recently that Mobisel would spend $150 million for investment this year

Mobisel, incorporated in February 1996, is 70 percent owned by PT Rajasa Hazanah Perkasa, 25 percent by state-owned PT Telkom and 5 percent by Telkom's employee pension fund. Rajasa, a firm owned by businessman Hutomo (Tommy) Mandala Putra, previously operated the NMT-450, the first generation of the NMT-450i system.

Mobisel, which has signed a $30 million contract with Nokia of Finland for the NMT-450i, won a $60 million credit facility last March with Nissho Iwai International of Japan. (icn)