VW poised for stake
VW poised for stake in Proton: Report
FRANKFURT: German automotive concern Volkswagen is now poised for a possible buy-in at the Malaysian car group Proton in the wake of the pullout by Mitsubishi Corp., the daily Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung (FAZ) reported on Thursday.
The paper noted that VW and Proton Holdings Bhd agreed in October 2004 to cooperate more closely.
In the meantime, VW inspectors have carried out a quality analysis of Proton's components suppliers, determining that 49 out of 179 suppliers do not meet international standards.
The FAZ said that this help by VW in itself was new for Proton, for in the past the Mitsubishi company had not provided the Malaysian company with any high-tech support.
The Mitsubishi group at one point had held over 15.8 percent of Proton. But in the spring of 2004, Mitsubishi Motor Corp. sold its 7.93 percent stake, and then at the end of the year trading company Mitsubishi Corp. sold its 7.93 percent holding.-- DPA
;AFP; ANPAf..r.. brief-BP-contract RI Likely To Extend BP Contracts On Gas Blocks JP/14/BP
RI likely to extend BP contracts
JAKARTA: The Indonesian government will likely agree to extend contracts awarded to BP Plc (BP) to operate three gas blocks in West Papua until 2035, a government official said on Thursday.
Iin Arifin Takhyan, director general of oil and gas at the Ministry of Mines and Energy, said the two sides were expected to sign an agreement in the near future.
BP has been asking the government to extend the contracts for the Wiriagar block, which will expire in 2023, the Muturi block, which will expire in 2027, and the Berau block, which will expire in 2017.
The three blocks will supply gas to the nearby Tangguh natural gas liquefaction facility that BP will develop with other partners.
The extension is to secure the gas supply for Tangguh. BP has signed contracts to sell LNG from Tangguh to offshore buyers until 2035. -- Dow Jones
;AFP; ANPAf..r.. Brief-Indonesia-steel Indonesia's Krakatau Steel to increase hot rolled steel output JP/14/Brief
Krakatau Steel to up steel output
JAKARTA: Indonesia's state-owned Krakatau Steel plans to increase its hot rolled coil steel plate production by one million tonnes a year by building new production facilities worth up to US$400 million, a report said on Thursday.
"The construction of the new plant is to anticipate increases in demand expected to reach 4.2 million tonnes in 2013," Krakatau Steel spokesman Alfauzi Salam told the Sinar Harapan evening newspaper.
Salam, who could not be immediately reached on Thursday, told the newspaper that the new plant would have an annual production capacity of about one million tonnes and would cost between $300 and $400 million to build.
Krakatau Steel currently produces 2.4 million tonnes of hot rolled coil and Salam said that he expected the new plant to begin producing in 2008 with construction expected to start in 2006.
He said that the new plant would be paid for out of earnings and asset sales, along with loans.-- AFP