Three major state plantation firms prepare IPOs Khoirul Amin, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta | Business | Wed, September 24 2014, 11:07 AM At least three major state plantation companies are revisiting plans to float their shares on the bourse following the signing of a government regulation on the establishment of a plantation holding company. The companies, namely PT Perkebunan Nusantara III (PTPN III), PTPN V and PTPN VII, were previously forced to postpone their initial public offering (IPO) plans pending clarification on the government’s plan to establish a plantation holding company. “Now, as the plan [on the establishment of a holding company] has been officially approved, we will continue with our IPO plan,” PTPN VII corporate secretary Sonny Soediastanto told The Jakarta Post on Tuesday. He cautioned, however, that the plan was subject to review. PTPN VII, which produces palm oil, sugar, tea and rubber, initially planned in 2008 to release around 30 percent of its stake in a bid to collect as much as Rp 1.5 trillion (US$125.4 million). The company announced last year that it would continue with the plan this year, expecting between Rp 1.7 trillion and Rp 2 trillion. Sonny said that State-Owned Enterprises (SOEs) Minister Dahlan Iskan had agreed to the IPO option, the process of which was still at an early stage. As of last year, PTPN VII’s financial health was rated A, according to the SOEs Ministry’s data. The firm booked a 6 percent increase in total sales to Rp 4.6 trillion last year from Rp 4.3 trillion in 2012. The firm’s bottom line surged by 44.7 percent to Rp 78.6 billion from Rp 54.3 billion in 2012. Meanwhile, PTPN III spokesman Ali Imran said that while an IPO was an option for his company, a final decision had not yet been made. “We are still preparing to establish the plantation holding company, in which we will become the parent company,” he said, emphasizing that state companies needed approval from the House of Representatives before offering their shares on the stock exchange. PTPN III was rated AA in its financial health last year, based on ministry data. The firm, which produces rubber and palm oil, saw a huge slump in its top and bottom lines last year due to weakening global demand on the back of political and economic crises. PTPN III’s sales dropped by 4.4 percent to Rp 5.96 trillion last year from Rp 5.7 trillion in 2012. Its net profit, meanwhile, fell by 55 percent to Rp 367.3 billion last year from Rp 823.7 billion the previous year. The SOEs Ministry expects the plantation holding company to generate profits of Rp 21 trillion in 2019. According to the ministry’s data, the state plantation firms had total combined sales of only Rp 42.16 trillion with combined net profits of just Rp 1.77 trillion in 2013.
Posted on: Thu, 25 Sep 2014 02:50:02 +0000
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