Bumi Plunges on Coal Mines Purchase

PT Bumi Resources, Asia's biggestexporter of power-station coal, plunged by the daily limit in
Jakarta trading on concerns its second acquisition in less than a week will increase the company's debt.
Bumi fell 9.6 percent to 850 rupiah in Jakarta, the biggest drop since Dec. 12, after agreeing to buy 77 percent of the parent of PT Fajar Bumi Sakti for 2.48 trillion rupiah ($224
million) to gain control of two mines. Bumi announced the purchase in a statement to the stock exchange today. The coal exporter said yesterday it will buy an 80 percent stake in the parent of
mining contractor PT Darma Henwa for $222 million, more than five times the market value based on current prices.
Indonesia's biggest coal producer is 21.4percent-owned by an investment company controlled by the family of Indonesian Welfare Minister Aburizal Bakrie and Northstar Equity Partners, the local affiliate of U.S. buyout firm TPG. Fajar Bumi Sakti has two coal concessions in East Kalimantan province with estimated reserves of 114 million metric tons, according to its Web site. Bumi has reserves of 2.1 billion tons.