Shares of Newmont Will Soon be Bought by Indonesia Govt

MATARAM, KOMPAS.com - The government will soon buy seven percent of the shares of PT Newmont Nusa Tenggara, a company commissioner said.  The government will buy Newmont’s shares under a 2010 divestment allocation based on the price negotiation reported by  the Minister of Energy and Mineral Resources  to the Finance Minister.

"In not too distance future there will be a decision on buying the 2010 divestment shares because the time to make the decision was set at December 16 or 30 days after the Finance Minister received a report on the price from the Minister of Energy and Mineral Resources," Commissioner of PT Daerah Maju Bersaing (DMB) Heryadi Rahmat said here Wednesday.       PT DMB is a joint enterprise with three regional administrations in West Nusa Tenggara (NTB), namely  NTB province,  Sumba regency, and West Sumbawa regency.  PT DMB was set up to join partner investor of PT Multicapital (business subsidiary of PT Bumi Resources Tbk), for the acquisition of shares of PT Newmont Nusa Tenggara (PTNNT) for divestment under a contract of work.

PT DMB and  PT Multicapital later set up a joint venture called  PT Multi Daerah Bersaing (MDB), buying 24 pct of the shares of PTNTT of the 2007 divested allocation (10 pct), 2008 (seven  pct), and  2009 (seven pct). Heryadi as former head of the NTB mining and energy agency is also a member of the price evaluation team in the price negotiations of the 2010 divested share allocation.

e said the NTB administration is awaiting a decision from the Minister of Finance on buying seven pct of the shares of PTNNT of the 2010 divested allocation which will soon be set.       "What is being awaited by NTB would soon have an answer, the finance minister will soon decided on buying the seven pct share not later than on December 18," he said.       The NTB administration, Heryadi said, hoped NTB will again become the buyer to enable PT MDB as a company along with  NTB and  investor PT Multicapital to make a transaction.      NTB Governor TGH M. Zainul Majdi had also written the minister of energy and mineral resources and the minister of finance informing them the wish to buy seven pct of the 2010 divestment shares, although they have not been officially informed on the value of the seven pct shares of the 2010 divestment allocated shares.       It had been reported meanwhile that PTNNT had lowered the offer seven pct price of the 2010 divestment shares from 444.079 million US dollars to 278 million US dollars, although the government wished it could be further lowered.       The government felt that the value of the seven pct divestment shares of 278 million US dollars was still too high compared to the value of the seven pct 2009 divestment shares, namely 246.8 million US dollars.       The outcome of negotiations before September 27, 2010, showed that the value of seven pct 2010 divestment shares of about 300 million US dollars, or less than 100 million US dollars of the initial offer of more than 444.079 million US dollars.       Previously on March 31, 2010, PTNNT offered seven pct shares of the 2010 divestment allocation worth more than 444.079 million US dollars, but the government felt it was too high, and negotiations had been intensified.       Compared with the value of seven pct 2009 investment allocation shares, the value of the shares that had been offered had increased by  197.279 million US dollars or 79.93 pct. Seven pct  of the divestment shares of the 2009 divestment allocation had been paid with 246.8 million US dollars on March 15, 2010.       PTNNT which operated on the basis of a contract of work signed on December 2, 1986, but the construction of the Batu Hijau project was started only in 1996 with an initial capital of 1.8 billion US dollars. PT NNT operates in full starting in May  2000, and will end in 2020.       Now, 20 pct of the shares of PT NTT is controlled by PT Pukuafu Indah, 56 pct by Nusa Tenggara Partnership, and 24 pct by PT Multi Daerah Bersaing (MDB) as joint venture PT Daerah Maju Bersaing (DMB) and PT Multicapital.       With special regard on the shares controlled by PT Pukuafu Indah, of the 20 pct shares of PTNNT, 2.2 pct of the controlled shares had been sold to PT Indonesia Masbaga Investama (IMI), so that PT Pukuafu Indah controls only 17.8 pct.       In the meantime, of the 56 pct shares of PT NNT controlled by  Nusa Tenggara Partnership, 31.5 pct of the shares belonged to Newmont Indonesia Limited (NIL), and 24.5 pct of  Nusa Tenggara Mining Corporation (NTMC) Sumitomo.