U.S. Bank backs RI mine

U.S. Bank backs RI mine

WASHINGTON (Reuter): The Export-Import Bank of the United
States said it will provide US$425 million to back U.S. exporters
of goods and services to develop one of the world's largest
copper and gold deposits in Indonesia.

The Ex-Im Bank's limited recourse project financing will
leverage $1 billion of U.S. procurement, directly supporting over
14,000 U.S. jobs and thousands more through subsuppliers, the
Bank said.

Companies supplying the Batu-Hijau Copper-Gold Project include
Newmont Gold Co and Fluor Daniel Inc, the principle operating
unit of Fluor Corp.

"Without Ex-Im Bank support, much of this project would have
been lost to foreign competitors," said William Trammell, Manager
of Project Financing, Fluor Daniel.

The Batu-Hijau project, located in a remote and sparsely
populated area of Indonesia, involves construction of port
facilities, a power plant, roads, telecommunications facilities,
and a mine which includes a concentrator, a crushing station and
conveyor systems.

The sponsors of the project are Newmont and Sumitomo Corp.