State-owned fertilizer firms consolidated

JAKARTA (JP): The government consolidated the country's five state-owned fertilizer companies into a single business group yesterday and appointed South Sumatra-based PT Pusri as the holding company.

The minister of industry and trade, Tunky Ariwibowo, said the consolidation was part of the government's strategy to improve the companies' competitiveness.

"It is an important business move in anticipation of the coming free trade era," the minister said at a ceremony marking the transfer of the government's shares in the other four fertilizer firms to PT Pusri.

The four fertilizer makers which were consolidated into Pusri are PT Petrokimia Gresik in East Java, PT Pupuk Kaltim in East Kalimantan, PT Pupuk Kujang in West Java and PT Pupuk Iskandar Muda in Aceh.

Aceh fertilizer maker PT Aceh Fertilizer Plant is not part of the consolidation because it is jointly owned by ASEAN governments.

Pupuk Kaltim has Rp 936 billion in paid-up capital, Petrokimia Gresik (Rp 396.42 billion), Pupuk Kujang (Rp 228.21 billion) and Iskandar Muda (Rp 268.42 billion).

Pusri's president, Suhadi, said the consolidation increased Pusri's paid-up capital from Rp 1.07 trillion to Rp 2.9 trillion, while its authorized capital rose from Rp 3.7 trillion to Rp 10 trillion.

Tunky said the government appointed Pusri as the parent company because as the country's oldest fertilizer maker it was the most experienced in terms of distribution and production.

Pusri, which was set up 1959, makes 2.28 million tons of urea fertilizer a year and has a wide distribution network across Indonesia.

The company was assigned as the sole distributor of urea fertilizers last year and supplied about 5.5 million tons of fertilizer a year, Tunky said.

Pupuk Kaltim makes 1.710 million tons of urea fertilizer a year, Pupuk Kujang (627,000 tons), Iskandar Muda (627,000 tons) and Petrokimia Gresik (460,000 tons).

Petrokimia also makes 600,000 tons of Triple-super-phosphate fertilizer and a million tons of ZA fertilizer a year.

Tunky said the consolidation would also enhance the fertilizer firms ability to expand their business and help guarantee sufficient fertilizer supplies. (jsk)