UniFiber pinning hope on Asia Resource takeover

Singapore

A RIVETING takeover battle for London-listed Indonesian coal mine Asia Resource Minerals (ARMS) between bigwig billionaire shareholders - Indonesia's Widjaja family and European financier Nat Rothschild - is playing out with Singapore's United Fiber System (UniFiber) waiting in the wings for an outcome that could transform it into a major coal miner.

The developments are taking place as UniFiber, a forestry and pulp firm, is nearing completion of its protracted S$1.88 billion reverse takeover (RTO) of Jakarta-listed PT Golden Energy Mines, controlled by the Widjaja family's Sinar Mas group and led by tycoon Eka Tjipta Widjaja. Sinar Mas, Indonesia's largest conglomerate, also owns Singapore-listed Golden-Agri Resources and Sinarmas Land.