Pertamina renews plan to have units go public

JAKARTA. Newly installed Pertamina president director Dwi Soetjipto intends to prioritize a plan for a number of the state-owned energy company's subsidiaries to sell their shares through initial public offerings (IPOs).

In a recent interview with The Jakarta Post, Dwi said that the aim of the IPOs was to help boost transparency and good governance in the management of its units, which comprise dozens of companies engaged in the medical, insurance, property, airline and shipping sectors.

"We are looking at which subsidiaries might go public. We have an insurance firm, a medical firm and Patra Jasa [property firm]. If we want them to be managed in a modern way, going public is an option," said Dwi.

Plans to list the subsidiaries on the stock exchange have existed for a decade, only to be called off as a result of internal and political pressure.

PT Tugu Pratama Indonesia, Pertamina Hospital and PT Patra Jasa are among Pertamina's flagships in insurance, health care and property, respectively. (ren)