Telkom sets up new joint venture

JAKARTA (JP): State-owned domestic telecommunications operator PT Telkom and four other firms agreed yesterday to form a joint venture company to provide satellite-based telecommunications services for oil industry operators.

Telkom's president, Setyanto P. Santosa, said after signing the joint-venture agreement that the new firm, called PT Patra Telekomunikasi Indonesia, will be 40 percent owned by PT Elnusa, a subsidiary of the state-owned oil company Pertamina, 30 percent by Telkom, 10 percent by the state-owned international telecommunications provider PT Indosat, 10 percent by PT Humpuss -- a diversified company owned by businessman Hutomo (Tommy) Mandala Putra -- and 10 percent by PT Panutan Duta, a subsidiary of Panutan Group, which is controlled by Sigit Harjojudanto, Tommy's elder brother.

Setyanto said the new joint venture, nicknamed Patra Komindo, will design, install, operate and maintain telecommunications systems and facilities for the oil industry, using very small aperture terminal (VSAT) technology.

Its services will include the provision of data and voice communications with a capacity which can be configurated flexibly.

The services are expected to help oil companies reduce operating costs, which will in turn improve efficiency.

Telkom also signed an agreement yesterday with Elnusa to acquire a stake at its subsidiary PT Elnusa Yellow Pages, the publisher of telephone directories.

Under the agreement, Telkom will gradually acquire 51 percent of Elnusa Yellow Pages shares between now and 1999.

Elnusa Yellow Pages is currently 70 percent owned by Elnusa and 30 percent by the pension fund of its employees.

Setyanto said that after the completion of the share acquisition in 1999, the directory publisher will be renamed PT Infonusa.

Telkom currently holds shares in several leading telecommunications firms, including PT Satelindo, PT Ratelindo, PT Pasifik Satelit Nusantara, PT Telekomindo, PT Lintas Artha, PT Komselindo and PT Telkomsel.(icn)