As part of our divestment obligation outlined in our 1986 Contract of Work with the Government of Indonesia, Newmont Indonesia Limited (NIL) and Nusa Tenggara Mining Corporation (NTMC), a subsidiary of Sumitomo Corporation, sold a 17 percent stake in PT Newmont Nusa Tenggara (PTNNT). The share sales to PT Multi Daerah Bersaing (PTMDB), a consortium of regional and local governments and PT Multicapital, a private company, occurred in November and December of 2009. As a result, Newmont received $359 million from both transactions, reflecting our portion of ownership in PTNNT.
"We are pleased the 2008 divestiture share sale is now complete as we continue to fulfill the obligations outlined in our Contract of Work with the Government of Indonesia," said Alan Blank, executive vice president, Legal and External Affairs. "We look forward to working with our new partners for the benefit of our shareholders and local communities, with a focus on maintaining industry leading standards for employee safety, environmental management and social responsibility."
Another 14 percent interest in PTNNT remains to be sold, 7 percent of which already has been negotiated in a sale and purchase agreement with PTMDB (closing of the sale agreement is expected in January). As part of the agreement, Newmont and Sumitomo will continue to operate Batu Hijau in line with our industry leading standards, maintain control of all mining decisions and retain a majority on the Board of Directors as long as we own more shares than PTMDB.
NIL and NTMC are required to sell 31 percent of their combined stake in PTNNT to Indonesian entities by 2010. With the sale of the 17 percent interest, Newmont's ownership in PTNNT is now 35.44 percent.
