Indonesian Gold (57 page)

‘Well, we have a few more soldiers here than before but, I
wouldn't read too much into that.'

‘Can I talk to Eric, perhaps he can ask Subroto to make a
few calls?'

‘I sent him down to Samarinda. He won't be back until
tomorrow. I could ask him then?'

Kremenchug
considered this.
‘Tell him that I'll be flying in with Fielding early Friday, arriving on Garuda via Hong Kong at
nine. Get him to see if Subroto can shed any light on what's going on. If necessary, have Eric
meet us upon arrival as I'm not overly excited about walking into this meeting, cold.'

‘Fine, I'll send a message to Samarinda.'

‘Okay, then, Sharon – I'll hook up with you from Jakarta
once we've finished our appointment with the authorities.'

Kremenchug
and Fielding had
flown out together, both exhausted by the sixteen-hour haul from Vancouver to Hong Kong where
they connected with a Garuda flight directly to the Sukarno-Hatta International Airport, which
serviced the Indonesian capital. When the executives arrived, Eric Baird was nowhere to be seen,
and so they decided to proceed directly to their Jakarta office, which they shared with P.T.
Subroto & Associates.

The city's early morning, Friday traffic ground to a halt
even before their taxi had reached the second tollgate, the journey placing them along a
grid-locked Jalan General Sudirman, more than an hour later. Pressed for time, Kremenchug left
the BGC President waiting in the cab while he hurried into the office building that housed their
Jakarta office, to check on Baird. There, the staff informed him that Baird had been unable to
return to the capital, as all flights to East Kalimantan had been cancelled due to heavy haze
caused by forest fires. As Subroto was also absent, Kremenchug and Fielding had no choice but to
proceed without the benefit of any briefing. With less than a few hours sleep under their belts,
both men were severely jet-lagged when they arrived at the Ministry of Mines & Energy, where
they discovered that their meeting had been re-scheduled, and the location mysteriously changed.
They were then bundled into a Toyota LandCruiser and escorted to the revised venue, Kremenchug's
uneasiness escalating when they entered the heavily guarded, parliamentary surrounds. They were
taken through a building into an oval reception area, their footsteps echoing ominously as they
were led across a highly polished, marble floor into a chamber. There the men were seated under
an unsmiling portrait of the House Speaker, where they remained cooling their heels, while a
steady flow of high-ranking, glassy-eyed military officers passed them by. A gold-leafed, printed
plaque affixed to one door indicated that these were the offices of General Sukirno, Chairman,
Steering Committee for Foreign Investment in Mining, the title alone sufficient to cause
Fielding's stomach ulcer to flare.

When the BGC representatives
were
finally ushered
into General Sukirno's office, they were met by an apologetic aide who offered coffee, explaining
that the Chairman had gone to the mosque for prayers, and would return within the hour. Annoyed,
Kremenchug leaned across and whispered to his companion, Fielding nodding in agreement that the
delay was most likely deliberate.

****

‘Ah, gentlemen, you are already here?' General Sukirno
swept into the lavish office and greeted the men cordially in their own language. ‘I was not
expecting you until mid-afternoon. Please, please,' he motioned for his visitors to be seated,
then settled down behind his carved, crescent shaped, teak desk and, with clasped hands
supporting his chin, looked over the top of his bifocals with eyebrows raised. Some moments
lapsed before the General leaned back, removed his glasses, and tapped the frame against one hand
as if searching for words to commence the discussion. Somewhere towards the rear of the room a
grandfather clock beat the seconds, Fielding drawing a long, slow, deep breath as his need for
oxygen grew.

‘I take it that you represent the entire BGC Board?'
Sukirno asked, suddenly, disturbingly composed – Fielding glancing at his associate to determine
who should respond.

‘Yes, General,' Kremenchug decided to lead. ‘Chris is the
company president, and I am a director. May I say that…'

‘Then you are conversant with the terms of P.T.
Kalimantan Gold's Contract of Work with respect to the Longdamai concessions?'

‘Yes, indeed, General,' Kremenchug confirmed. ‘Is there a
problem with our contract?'

Sukirno look puzzled. ‘Were you the company officers
responsible for the original applications to obtain the concession areas?'

Kremenchug
shot Fielding a
signal for him to intercede. ‘I was aware of the submission, General,' he said, ‘but the
submission was made by Dominion Mining. Perhaps Chris can respond?'

Fielding cleared his throat, nervously. ‘How can I help,
General?'

Sukirno's eyes appeared to narrow. ‘You understand that I
chair the Indonesian Parliamentary committee which oversees foreign investment in the mining
sector?' Without waiting for their response, the influential figure continued. ‘It has been
brought to our attention, just recently, that some serious breaches have occurred in relation to
submissions made on behalf of foreign applicants.' He paused, reached into a drawer, and
extracted a file, dropping this heavily onto the desk, shaking his head as if disgusted with its
contents. ‘The committee is interested in determining whether BGC was aware that Dominion Mining
had misled the Indonesian authorities as to its capacity to fund exploitation, in the event the
exploration process was successful. It would seem that at the time Dominion Mining Incorporated
was awarded the Kalimantan concessions and then established its operating company, P.T.
Kalimantan Gold, the company's finances were inadequate to develop the project.'

Fielding's brow collapsed into deep, rippled furrows, with
tiny beads of sweat gathered at the nape of his neck. ‘What bearing could that possibly have on
BGC?'

General Sukirno permitted disappointment to cloud his
face. ‘Obviously, my government has neither the authority nor the capacity to interfere in
commercial transactions executed outside the Indonesian jurisdiction. The ownership of your
companies, although of interest to us, remains your business, so to speak. Consequently, that P.
T. Kalimantan Gold now appears to be some sort of subsidiary operation of BGC is not what
concerns us here, today. That there is evidence of the original parent company, Dominion Mining
falsifying statements made to the Mines & Energy Ministry in order to obtain general
exploration rights is, however, of considerable concern. The members…'

‘That's…absurd!' Kremenchug interjected, surprising the
senior official. ‘Dominion Mining is a reputable organization and is financially
sound!'

‘Then perhaps
that
company's directors would be
able to offer an audited copy of Dominion's balance sheet for the period pertaining to the year
it was awarded the Contract of Work?'

Both men knew that this was an unreasonable request, but
one which, if pursued, could raise a number of embarrassing issues. Anxious to hear what else the
Chairman had to say, Kremenchug regained his composure. ‘I believe what is relevant, General, is
that BGC has the capacity to develop the Longdamai discovery, and that all parties will enjoy a
prosperous future together.'

‘But BGC is not the recognized contractor to carry out
such work,' Sukirno offered, filling the air with intrigue.

‘I don't understand, General,' Kremenchug moved forward in
his seat. ‘How can there be any suggestion that BGC won't develop the Longdamai mine?'

‘The Contract of Work stipulates that Dominion Mining Inc
was awarded the right to explore the concession areas in question, through the locally created
entity. It is my understanding that P.T. Kalimantan Gold has yet to submit a formal application
to move to the next stage of the contractual process.'

Alarmed, Fielding sprang to his feet. ‘What's really going
on here?' He pushed Kremenchug's restraining arm away angrily, his tall, towering form glaring
down at the Indonesian General. ‘Are you telling us that BGC won't be awarded the rights to
develop the Longdamai mine?'

General Sukirno looked up calmly, forcing a smile. ‘I
trust it won't be necessary for me to call the guards?' he attempted, lightly.

Kremenchug
had also risen to
his feet by this time, dragging Fielding back to his seat as he swore under his breath. ‘Take it
easy, Chris. Come on, sit down.'

Reluctantly, Fielding followed, color returning to his
blood-drained face as anger subsided.

‘If BGC's rights are ignored, there will be a mass exodus
of foreign mining companies from Indonesia,' Fielding warned.

‘You mean, P.T. Kalimantan Gold's rights, surely?' Sukirno
allowed his smile to cool.

‘Whatever!' the executive snapped, defiantly.

‘I remind you, Mister Fielding, that we called this
meeting to discuss what options might be available to us all, in determining the operating
company's position with respect to the Longdamai concession.' Sukirno's fingers drummed the
unopened file while he gathered his thoughts. ‘Indonesia was built on consensus, gentlemen,' he
forced another smile before adding, ‘and compromise.' In untypical Javanese fashion, he stared
the company president down, resisting the sneer that tempted the corners of his mouth. ‘I suggest
that you listen to what is on offer, gentlemen, before considering the alternatives. After all,
P.T. Kalimantan Gold is yet to negotiate terms for exploitation of the Longdamai site. The
Indonesian Government has received expressions of interest from a number of financially sound,
mining houses offering finance and expertise and,' Sukirno hesitated, as if relishing the moment,
‘the President has instructed the Minister to carefully examine these offers as to how they might
impact on national interests.'

With the mention of the Indonesian First Family
Kremenchug's chest fell heavily. He knew, from those few words encapsulated in the General's
response, that the outcome was inevitable. They had seriously erred in not finalizing the
secondary contracts guaranteeing them the right to mine before announcing their discovery. And,
that error in judgment now jeopardized BGC's rights – and his own, elusive dream. Crushed by this
realization he turned to Christopher Fielding. ‘We need to talk.' Then, addressing the Chairman,
‘General, may we have a few minutes?'

Sukirno rose. ‘Of course, gentlemen, of course!' He
touched a button hidden discreetly from view, and an aide entered. ‘Show our visitors into the
guest lounge,' he ordered, then returned to his seat, smugly confident that the BGC directors
would acquiesce, and surrender control over the Longdamai field.

****

The two executives were shown into an unoccupied room, the
aide barely out of earshot when Fielding exploded.

‘It's a goddamn outrage!' he all but shouted.

‘Shh!' Kremenchug warned, finger to lips, ‘keep it down,
for Chrissakes!'

‘Screw it, Alex!' he snapped, ‘we should go straight from
here to the Canadian Embassy!'

‘Technically, they've got us by the balls,' Kremenchug
slumped into a rattan chair.

‘You're not seriously suggesting that we let these
bastards walk away with our mine?' Fielding asked, disbelief spread across his face.

‘No, I'm not suggesting anything of the kind.'

‘They can't get away with it,' the BGC president wailed,
‘the entire, fucking international mining community would blacklist them!'

Kremenchug
crossed his arms
and glared at his naïve associate. ‘Including those companies vying for our rights?'

‘We could take them to the International Court in the
Hague,' Fielding insisted.

‘And argue what?' Kremenchug challenged. ‘That we failed
to complete the necessary applications to move to the next phase of operations? Besides, this is
not an issue between BGC and the Indonesian Government. The concession was awarded to P.T.
Kalimantan Gold, a corporate entity created under their law.'

Fielding threw his hands in the air. ‘We've been trying to
finalize the paperwork for months.
You
know that!' He commenced pacing around the room.
‘Couldn't we prove that they deliberately procrastinated – accuse them of orchestrating this mess
to get control over the concession?'

‘Chris, didn't you hear him say the First Family is now in
on the hunt?'

Fielding came to a halt. ‘Are you saying that the
President's kids are behind this?'

Exasperated, Kremenchug unfolded his arms and pointed up
at an unsmiling photograph on the opposite wall. ‘They've obviously done their homework. We've
screwed up, Chris. Now what we have to do is work out the best deal we can for BGC, or risk
losing everything.'

‘No, fuck it, Alex!' the company's president rejected ‘We
have to fight them on this. I say we take them to court and see what happens from
there!'