Incumbent Telkom Indonesia has agreed a Rp4.5trn (US$406.7m) loan to fund 2014 capex.
Three state-owned lenders – Bank Mandiri, Bank Rakyat and Bank Negara – will provide Rp1.5trn (US$135.5m) each, a spokesperson told TelecomFinance.
The facility,…
Incumbent Telkom Indonesia has agreed a Rp4.5trn (US$406.7m) loan to fund 2014 capex.
Three state-owned lenders – Bank Mandiri, Bank Rakyat and Bank Negara – will provide Rp1.5trn (US$135.5m) each, a spokesperson told TelecomFinance.
The facility, which carries a Jibor +2% interest, is expected to be signed in January 2014, following approval from the board of commissioners.
The loan will go towards its capital expenditures for next year, estimated at Rp22.28trn (US$2bn). Around 65% of that capex will be funded externally, the spokesperson added.
Separately, Telkom has dismissed local reports indicating it could list its mobile unit Telkomsel. However, the state-owned company confirmed it is looking for a strategic partner for its tower subsidiary Mitratel. Several listed towercos are already being reviewed, Telkom said in a statement late last week.
Earlier this year, the telco confirmed it was considering selling a 49% stake in Mitratel in order to focus on its core business.
The company’s president director Arief Yahya told reporters at the time that three options were on the cards for Mitratel: an IPO; a sale to a local listed towerco; or a merger with a rival.
Several tower operators had reportedly been invited to study an acquisition, including Tower Bersama, Sarana Menara, Solusi Tunas Pratama (STP) and Centrin Online.
Mitratel manages around 3,000 towers and is in the process of buying another 14,000 towers from Telkomsel, in which Singapore’s Singtel has a 35% stake.
Telkom said in the statement last week that the Telkomsel tower spinoff will take place if it secures approval from SingTel and once the Mitratel deal is complete.
