Indonesian Parliament Rejects Pertamina's Push for Stake in Medco

JAKARTA (Dow Jones Newswires), Nov. 25, 2010

Indonesian parliament rejected PT Pertamina's plan to buy 27.9% stake in PT Medco Energi Internasional, a law maker said.

"It's a waste of money," Efendy Simbolon, the chairman of a parliamentary committee overseeing the energy sector. "It would be better for Pertamina to buy oil and gas blocks instead of buying a stake (in Medco) as it will also have to assume (Medco's) debt."

The parliament's rejection throws up another hurdle for the state-owned oil and gas company's plans to take a stake in Medco, the country's largest publicly listed oil and gas company.

Earlier this month, a person familiar with the plan told Dow Jones Newswires that Pertamina might drop abandon its attempt to acquire the stake because the asking price was $700 million, which he said was "too high."

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