Rajawali wins 'in-principle' GSM permit

JAKARTA (JP): A senior government official said yesterday that a firm controlled by the Rajawali Group has won an "in-principal permit" to participate in the Global System for Mobile (GSM) cellular telephone business.

"The remaining permits to be given to PT Telekomindo Primabhakti are operational permits and those which include a transfer of frequency," Director General of Post and Telecommunications Djakaria Purawidaja told reporters here yesterday.

Djakaria did not say when the rest of the permits will be issued.

Telekomindo is 54 percent controlled by PT Rajawali Wira Bhakti, 10 percent by the Army's Kartika Eka Paksi Foundation, 10 percent by the state-owned domestic telecommunications company PT Telkom, 20 percent by the pension fund of Telkom, two percent by the cooperative of Telkom employees and two percent by the little-known Tri Daya Foundation.

Rajawali Wira Bhakti is controlled by businessman Peter Sondakh, the Gadjah Tunggal Group and the Ometraco Group, analysts said.

Rajawali is known as a regular investing partner to the Bimantara Citra Group, which is controlled by one of President Soeharto's sons, and to the Sinar Mas Group.

Sondakh, who was not available for comment yesterday, gained international attention in 1990 as a result of Rajawali's controversial takeover of the debt-ridden cigarette maker PT Bentoel.

Telekomindo has also been rumored by various segments of local business circles as one of the winning consortia in the path-breaking joint operation project aimed at managing several areas of domestic telecommunications services.

Djakaria said yesterday that Telekomindo has secured the participation of other partners to operate in the highly capital intensive GSM sector.

The official, however, declined to name Telekomindo's new partners for the GSM operation.

Bimantara

Other than Telekomindo, Indonesian companies allowed to operate in the GSM sector to date are PT Satelindo and PT Telkomsel.

Satelindo, currently the sole operating GSM firm, is 45 percent owned by a subsidiary of the Bimantara Citra Group, 25 percent by DeteMobil, a subsidiary of Deutsche Telekom, 22.5 percent by Telkom and 7.5 percent by PT Indosat.

Telkomsel, which was incorporated recently, is 51 percent owned by Telkom, while the rest is controlled by Indosat.

Telkomsel, which plans to invite a foreign partner, is expected to begin operations in Java within the next seven months. It currently runs GSM operations as a pilot project on Batam and Bintan islands in Riau.

An informed source in the GSM sector said recently that the government is processing the proposal of another private consortium to enter the sector.

The source, who requested anonymity, said the consortium is made up by U.S.-based Bell Atlantic and PT Rajasa Hazanah Perkasa, which is connected to Hutama Mandala Putra, President Soeharto's youngest son. (hdj)