Pertamina to speed up change

The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

State-owned oil and gas company Pertamina president Baihaki Hakim said on Wednesday that Pertamina was expected to become a limited liability company in early 2003, sooner than the expected November 2003.

Baihaki said that the transformation process was part of government moves to liberalize the country's oil and gas sector.

He said that Pertamina had launched a tender process to select an auditor to separate company and government assets.

Under the new oil and gas law, which came into effect in November last year, Pertamina has to transform itself into limited liability company within two years.

Elsewhere, Baihaki said that President Megawati Soekarnoputri planned to visit South Korea next month to help secure a LNG (liquefied natural gas) market for Pertamina.

He said Pertamina was seeking ways to ensure that its LNG supply contract with South Korea would continue as the country was about to liberalize its energy sector.

Pertamina exports about 5.2 million tons of LNG annually to state-run Korea Gas Corp.