Pertamina revives plan for offshore bond issue

Pertamina revives plan for offshore bond issue

Dow Jones, Jakarta

State-owned oil and gas company PT Pertamina has decided to
revive its plan to raise around US$500 million from the offshore
bond market later this year, a director with the company said on
Friday.

Pertamina's finance director, Alfred Rohimone, told reporters
that the company will meet with prospective foreign investors
during a conference on the Indonesian economy in London May 19-
20.

"We will first test the market's response to the plan," he
said.

The company's new management shelved the plan when it stepped
into power in October. Since then, it has studied the possibility
of issuing bonds locally to finance its business expansion.

It's not clear why Pertamina decided on a global bond issue.

Rohimone only said that the company has obtained approval for
the plan from its board of commissioners.

Pertamina plans to spend $3 billion in the next five years to
expand its business, which it will fund through loans and bonds.