Telkom sets up new subsidiaries

Telkom sets up new subsidiaries

JAKARTA (JP): The state-owned domestic telecommunications
operator PT Telkom signed here yesterday an agreement to
establish PT Metro Selular Nusantara and PT Mobil Selular
Indonesia, two more subsidiaries dealing with mobile cellular
telecommunications.

Metro Selular is 64 percent own by PT Centralindo Panca Sakti,
20.17 percent by Telkom, 9.83 percent by Telkom's employee
pension fund, 5 percent by PT Djati Yudha Cellular and 1 percent
by the cooperative of the Armed Forces. Centralindo is controlled
by the Napan Group.

Metro Selular plans to develop 150,000 lines with an
investment of Rp 400 billion (US$175 million).

Mobil Selular is 70 percent owned by PT Rajasa Hazanah
Perkasa, 25 percent by Telkom and 5 percent by Telkom's employee
pension fund. Rajasa, partly owned by International Wireless
Communications of the United States, is controlled by PT Bina
Reksa Perdana, which is owned by Hutomo Mandala Putra.

Stakes

Telkom currently owns stakes in several other cellular mobile
telecommunications subsidiaries, including PT Satelindo and PT
Telkomsel, which runs the global system for mobile
communications, as well as PT Komselindo and PT Telekomindo Prima
Bakti, which runs the advanced mobile phone system.

The businesses of Metro Selular and Mobil Selular were
previously run by two separate firms under revenue sharing plans
with Telkom.

Metro Selular will run the narrow-band advanced mobile phone
system (N-AMPS) in Central and East Java, Maluku and Irian Jaya.
The business was started by PT Centralindo Panca Sakti.

Meanwhile, Mobil Selular runs the Nordic mobile telephones
(NMT-450) system.

The government ruled that, starting in 1993,
telecommunications cooperation between private firms and Telkom
must take the form of a management contract, a join operation
scheme or a join venture arrangement. Existing business based on
revenue sharing with Telkom will gradually be abolished.

Rajasa president Tony Hardianto said that in addition to the
existing operation areas of Jakarta and Bandung in West Java,
Mobil Selular will expand next year throughout Java, Lampung,
Bali and Lombok.

He said that by August next year, Mobil Selular expects to
have 80,000 subscribers. Currently the company lists some 26,000
subscribers. (icn)