MALAYSIA SEEKS 42 BILLION YEN PIPELINE LOAN Malaysia has asked Japan for a 42 billion yen 25-year loan to finance the construction of gas pipelines from eastern Trengganu to southern Johor, the Overseas Economic Cooperation Fund (OECF) said. OECF's chief representative, Takashi Matsuya, told reporters the Japanese Government is appraising the loan. Another OECF official told Reuters Japan is likely to approve the loan because "it is technically and economically viable." If approved, the loan would carry a coupon rate of four pct, a grace period of seven years, Matsuya said. It would be disbursed over three years, he added. The pipeline contruction is the second phase of the Peninsular Gas Utilisation Project by Petronas, Malaysia's national oil company. The first phase was the supply of gas to households in and around the eastern oil town of Kertih.