Industry Ministry will launch a new financial relief program on coming Friday to provide financial assistance worth about Rp255 billion (about US $28.02 million) to sick textile firms for replacement of old machineries.

Of this amount, about Rp175 billion will be utilized to fund the interest payable on bank loans, while remaining Rp80 billion will be paid as soft loans for purchase of new equipments.

According to Ansari Bukhari, Director General, Industry Ministry, the subsidies would be paid directly to the firms and would amount to about 11 percent of their reequipping loans.

The company would be eligible to receive the subsidy if the machinery it purchases should be manufactured in 2002 or later.

The Ministry plans to provide 50 percent of the special assistance funds to fabric manufacturers, 30 percent to garment manufacturers and rest 20 percent to yarn producers to offer a helping hand at medium-sized textile manufacturers.