BSP plans to tap bond market

The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

Publicly listed PT Bakrie Sumatera Plantations (BSP) is considering issuing bonds worth up to US$125 million to help finance its expansion plans.

President director Ambono Janurianto said Thursday that the bond issue would likely take place in September.

""We're considering issuing the bonds in September to support the financing of our projects in the coming years. If we can't do it this year, then we will probably issue them in the first quarter of 2007,"" he said after the company's annual shareholders meeting.

Ambono said the company planned to expand its business by increasing the area of its palm oil and rubber plantations by a total of 100,000 hectares within the next seven years.

Forty percent of the new plantation land would be devoted to rubber and 60 percent to oil palms, he added.

""This year, we plan to plant 10,000 hectares. Some 4,000 hectares will be planted in Lamandau district in Central Kalimantan and the remaining 6,000 hectares in Muara Tebo and Sarolangun districts in Jambi,"" said Ambono.

The additional plantation land comes on top of the company's existing 19,378 hectares of rubber plantations and 31,551 hectares of oil palm plantations.

Ambono added that BSP, together with its partner, PT Rekayasa Industri, would start construction of a biodiesel plant next year, which it was expected would be completed in 2008.

""We hope that this biodiesel plant will be able to produce up to 100,000 tons of biodiesel per year to help supply the country's future fuel needs,"" he said.

The company also announced Thursday that net profit in 2005 increased by about 21 percent to Rp 115.72 billion ($12.5 million), compared to Rp 95.92 billion the previous year. -- JP/07