Rothschild Unhappy with Bumi Plc Deal

TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - Co-founder of London-listed coal company Bumi Plc., Nathaniel Rothschild, still objects to Bumi's decision to sell 29.2 percent of its stake in Bumi Resources Tbk (BUMI). to the Bakrie Group for US$501 million in cash. Rothschild hopes that regulators would step in and "ensure the interests of independent shareholders are protected," he said in a written statement received by Tempo on Saturday.

According to Rothschild, who owns a 14.8 percent stake in Bumi, the deal will allow Bakrie to maintain its domination over Bumi Plc. "No independent chairman in their right mind will want to be involved with a company, if this deal is allowed to stand, will continue to be controlled by the Bakrie Concert Party via Samin Tan."

Bumi Plc said on Thursday that it had entered into a sale-and-purchase agreement to sell the company's Bumi Resources stake to Long Haul Holdings, a Bakrie subsidiary, for $501 million. The current value of the stake, which Bumi Plc regards as an investment, is $314 million.

After the separation, the company is planning to return some of the cash to shareholders. The company will also overhaul its board of directors, including independent chairman Samin Tan.

With the agreement, Borneo Lumbung Energi Metal (IDX: BORN), a company controlled by Tan, will get the green light to purchase 23.8 percent of Bakrie's shares in Bumi Plc. The acquisition was made by Ravenwood Plt. Ltd., an affiliate of BORN.

"The acquisition price was $223 million," Borneo Lumbung Energi Metal President Director, Alexander Ramlie, said some time ago. Alexander said that the acquisition will be made once it is approved by the majority of BORN's independent shareholders.

RIRIN AGUSTIA