The government swapped Rp 280 billion (US$30 million) worth of bonds maturing between 2007 and 2009 for new ones due in 2021, as part of efforts to restructure the country's outstanding debt in bonds.

It received Rp 7.6 trillion worth of bids from bondholders during Thursday's open auction for the bond swap, the Finance Ministry's director general of the treasury, Mulia P. Nasution, said.

A total of 280,000 variable-rate bonds with average weighted yields between 12.85 and 13.19 percent were swapped with new 15-year fixed-rate bonds, carrying a 12.8 percent coupon rate.

Mulia said that the government planned to hold bond-swap auctions at least once a month.

It also will hold its next bond sale March 14, after reaping Rp 3.3 trillion from its second bond offering of the year earlier this week.

The government has been refinancing its bonds through maturity-extending swaps and buybacks, to better manage the repayment of the debts and reduce their coupon payments.

It may face the risk of having to pay as much as Rp 40 trillion in due bonds between 2007 and 2009 if they are not refinanced.

The government plans to raise Rp 24.9 trillion in net proceeds from bond sales this year, including a total of $2 billion in overseas bonds, to help finance the state budget deficit.

Global credit rating agencies Standard and Poor's, Moody's Investment Services and Fitch Ratings all rate Indonesian bonds as junk, or still below investment grade.