Bapepam delays announcement on Bumi audit

The Jakarta Post ,  Jakarta   |  Thu, 06/11/2009 1:13 PM  |  Business

The stock market watchdog Bapepam-LK has again delayed the announcement of an audit report of acquisition deals made by PT Bumi Resources.

Anis Baridwan, head of financial report inspections at the Capital Market and Financial Institution Supervisory Agency, said Wednesday that his office was still waiting for a meeting between an independent auditor team, represented by the Indonesian Society of Appraisers (MAPPI), and Bumi before announcing the results to the public.

"We have not given them an exact time frame, but we hope it will be as soon as next week," he said at his office.

Baridwan's statement marks the second delay made by Bapepam in announcing the much-awaited audit report covering acquisition transactions made by Bumi, the country largest coal producer.

The MAPPI team has been investigating whether the decision by Bumi management to acquire three local coal companies Dharma Henwa, Fajar Bumi Sakti and Pendopo Energy - for a total of Rp 6.18 trillion (US$611.8 million) late last year - was appropriate, as some analysts considered the deals too expensive.

Pendopo is allegedly controlled by PT Bakrie Capital Indonesia, while the Fajar Bumi president director is a former analyst at Bumi and its coal-producing subsi-diaries, according to a coal inventory document.

Last week, Bapepam chairman Fuad A. Rahmany said his office would announce the report this week, pending a final draft from the MAPPI.

Media were scheduled to attend a press conference held by Bapepam on Wednesday, where the audit results were to be released.

However, the press conference was cancelled with no clear explanation.

The cancellation has raised speculation that Bumi, which is under the control of the family related to the Coordinating Minister for People's Welfare Aburizal Bakrie, may have interfered in the auditing process.

Baridwan denied the speculation, saying the delay had occurred because the report had not yet been finalized.

However, analysts expressed concerns the delay would raise the risk of speculation in the market. The MAPPI began working on auditing Bumi acquisition deals two months ago. Should the MAPPI's audit results show that Bumi deals have been unfair, Bapepam will not be authorized to cancel their transactions. "A shareholder meeting will determine whether the transactions will continue," Baridwan said.

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