Kuala Lumpur is investigating allegations that eight of 10 plantation companies blamed for forest fires in Indonesia are owned by Malaysians, a senior Malaysian official said today.

Mohammad Yasin, secretary-general of Malaysia's environment ministry, met Indonesian Forestry Minister Malam Sambat Kaban in Jakarta to discuss the raging forest fires, whose choking smoke enveloped parts of Malaysia last week.

"We have the names of the eight. We don't know what sort of action we will take yet because we are looking for further information about them," Mohammad told reporters.

The Indonesian Forestry Ministry had said that eight of 10 plantation firms accused of using fire to clear land for cultivation were Malaysian-owned.

The ministry said company officials could face up to 15 years in jail if found guilty of illegal land-clearing.

Indonesian President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono has pledged to take firm action against those responsible for the fires.

Cloud-seeding operations

Kaban confirmed that Jakarta and Kuala Lumpur would start cloud-seeding to induce rain next Monday on Sumatra island and Kalimantan, the Indonesian part of Borneo island.

"It will start on August 22 and take place for about 10 days," he told reporters, adding that cloud-seeding was the fastest method available to put out the forest fires in Riau, North Sumatra and West Kalimantan provinces.

Malaysia deployed 125 firefighters, equipped with heavy-duty pumps and all-terrain vehicles, to Indonesia yesterday. The same team fought fires in Indonesia during the 1997-98 haze which blighted parts of Southeast Asia.

Australia also announced yesterday it would send a dozen bush firefighting experts to Indonesia after it requested assistance.

Operations will focus on Riau and North Sumatra because the haze that had blanketed parts of Malaysia came mostly from those provinces, Kaban said.

In a related development, the Malaysian government said all possible action to be taken against these errant companies will be discussed with the Attorney General's Chambers.

According to a Bernama report, Plantation Industry and Commodities Minister Peter Chin Fah Kui said he supported the Indonesia's decision to act against the companies involved.

He said if the scenario was reversed, Malaysia would also do the same.