Indonesia Economy Forum

[Nike]

Japan keen to revitalize Java`s northern railway network
Selasa, 10 Mei 2016 17:48 WIB | 794 Views

Jakarta (ANTARA News) - Japan has expressed interest to revitalize Javas northern railway network, an official of the transportation ministry stated on Tuesday.

At a discussion on railway development in Indonesia, Hermanto Dwiatmoko, the director general of railways, revealed that the revitalization would be carried out by increasing the speed of trains operating on the Jakarta-Surabaya route from currently 80 kilometers per hour (km/h) to 150 km/h.

"If trains can run on the Jakarta-Surabaya route at a speed of 150 km/h, then it would be more interesting," he affirmed.

Hermanto earlier remarked that the transportation ministry had offered two projects for funding options: the Trans Sumatra and Trans Sulawesi projects and the revitalization of Javas northern railway network.

"I said if they want to showcase their advanced technology, then they should opt for the revitalization project, and it seems they are interested," he noted.

The government has offered the Trans Sumatra and Trans Sulawesi projects to China, and the country is interested, he revealed.

He said the government had made the offers after the ministrys budget was cut by 10 percent to improve efficiency.

"The budget for 2016 is cut by 10 percent, or some Rp3.7 trillion, from Rp40 trillion," he stated, adding that a decline in taxes and other forms of revenue were among the reasons for the decision.

He pointed out that the cut affected all sectors and not just the railways due to which there was a likelihood of delays in the completion of several projects.

He said projects, including the Trans-Java, Trans-Sumatra, Trans-Sulawesi, Trans-Kalimantan and Trans-Papua, which were scheduled for completion in 2019, may possibly be delayed.

By 2030, the transportation ministry has set a target to develop a 12.1 thousand-km-long railway network covering Java-Bali, Sumatra, Kalimantan, Sulawesi, and Papua and a 3.8 thousand-km-long urban railway network.

Until 2019, the Directorate General of Railways has set a target to develop a 3,258-km-long railway network for the Trans-Sumatra, the southern line of Trans-Java, Trans-Kalimantan, Trans-Sulawesi, and Trans-Papua projects.(*)

http://www.antaranews.com/en/news/104584/japan-keen-to-revitalize-javas-northern-railway-network

 

[BoQ77]

with less attention to that project, we still have the good railway network.
because they're Japanese

 

[Nike]

Indonesia`s forex reserve up US$200 M to US$107.7 B
Selasa, 10 Mei 2016 20:03 WIB | 616 Views

Photo document of rupiahs and US dollars at Jakarta foreign exchange. (ANTARA/Widodo S. Jusuf)

Jakarta (ANTARA News) - Bank Indonesia said its foreign exchange reserve rose US$200 million to US$107.7 billion by the end of April 2016.

The foreign exchange reserve was enough to finance the countrys imports for 8.1 months or imports and foreign debt service for 7.8 months, the countrys central bank said here on Tuesday.

The increase of US$200 million was from the sales of Bank Indonesias securities by the end of March and other revenues.

"Revenues until end of April exceeded the countrys foreign exchange requirement mainly to service the governments foreign debts," the central banks spokesman Arbonas Hutabarat said.

The foreign exchange reserve was well above the international adequacy standard which is based on the fund needed for three months imports.

The monetary authority said the reserve could sustain resilience against external factors and economic growth.
(Uu.H-ASG/F001)

http://www.antaranews.com/en/news/104594/indonesias-forex-reserve-up-us200-m-to-us1077-b

 

[pr1v4t33r]

Terminal 3 Ultimate, Soekarno Hatta Airport construction progress
With this long overdue expansion, Soekarno Hatta airport will be able to handle more than 70 million PAX a year. Meanwhile Terminal 4 development plan already in the pipeline.

 

[Nike]

President to sign number of mous in South Korea
Rabu, 11 Mei 2016 23:14 WIB | 851 Views

Jakarta (ANTARA News) - President Joko Widodo plans to sign a number of memorandums of understanding during his state visit to South Korea on May 15-18.

"President Jokowi will begin his state visit to Seoul, South Korea, on Sunday in response to the invitation from President Park Geun-hye," South Koreas ambassador to Indonesia, Taiyoung Cho, said here on Wednesday.

He explained that the MOUs will cover several sectors, including the environment, creative industry, forestry, peat land, trade and others.

South Korea is the fifth biggest investor in Indonesia, with total investment reaching US$1.2 billion while trade between the two countries peaked at US$30 billion in 2011.

President Jokowi is also scheduled to hold business meetings, including a one-on-one meeting and a luncheon round table discussion, with 20 biggest businessmen in South Korea.

He will also give a speech at the Asian Leadership Meeting, the biggest discussion forum in South Korea on leadership and innovation.

Foreign minister Retno Marsudi had earlier informed that South Korea is one of the main partners of Indonesia when it comes to trade, investment and tourism. Indonesia also plans to partner with South Korea to expedite the pace of industrialization in the country, she said.

Besides South Korea, President Jokowi is also scheduled to go on a working visit to Russia to attend the ASEAN-Russia Summit on May 18-20.

On May 18, President Jokowi will depart for Sochi, Russia, for the ASEAN-Russia summit and a number of bilateral meetings with several partners.

President Jokowi visited Busan, South Korea, in 2014, to see a number of industrial zones, including a shipbuilding industry.

reporting by ageng wibowo
(H-YH)
EDITED BY INE/H-YH

http://www.antaranews.com/en/news/104618/president-to-sign-number-of-mous-in-south-korea

S&P gives positive signal on Indonesian rating
Rabu, 11 Mei 2016 20:07 WIB | 719 Views

Jakarta (ANTARA News) - The international rating agency S&P Global Ratings has signaled an increase in Indonesian debt rating to investment grade.

"Its possible that we might raise the rating to a higher level. We are still studying that possibility," said Kyran Curry, the Director of Sovereign and International Public Finance Ratings of S&P Global Ratings.

Curry made the statement after a meeting here on Wednesday between an S&P delegation and Coordinating Minister fort Economy Darmin Nasution.

He said the S&P Global Ratings delegation had received information from relevant Indonesian officials about the countrys economic condition.

Curry indicated there were positive prospects for Indonesian economy although there has been no official statement from S&P Global Ratings.

"It seems the results could be announced next month as part of the monthly review by the end of May," he said.

S&P is the only international rating agency not yet giving the rating of investment grade for Indonesia.

Fitch Ratings and Moodys already gave the rating of investment grade for the country the end of 2011 and early 2012.

Finance Minister Bambang Brodjonegoro said the S&P delegation has noted that the government has made improvements in various sectors such as in the management of the countrys economy and state finance in relations between the center and the regions.

In addition, the government had made much progress in improving business climate, simplifying licensing procedure through a series of deregulation measure to attract investment, Bambang said.

Therefore, if S&P raised the Indonesian rating to investment grade, more investment are expected to come to the country.

Investors would have no more doubt in doing business in the country, he said.

"If we have the rating of investment grade , more investment would flow into the country," he said.(*)

http://www.antaranews.com/en/news/104615/sp-gives-positive-signal-on-indonesian-rating

 

[pr1v4t33r]

The Commodities Producer That Dodged a Bullet When China Slowed
As Mitsubishi Corp. becomes the latest player looking at quitting a major mining project in Indonesia, along with the likes of Newmont Corp. and BHP Billiton Ltd., it would seem the Southeast Asian nation’s economy is becoming another victim of the great commodity slump. But it isn’t.

Almost unique among the big resource-exporting emerging markets, Indonesia seems to have dodged the bullet that struck Brazil, Russia, Venezuela and others as China’s growth slowed and the global resources boom waned.

While many of its rivals have slid into recession, the archipelago of 17,000 islands -- China’s biggest supplier of power-station coal and a major producer of tin, copper, nickel, palm oil and natural gas -- has managed to keep growth ticking along at around 5 percent. As Finance Minister Bambang Brodjonegoro put it recently at a media gathering: “We are not Brazil.”

......

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/artic...oducer-that-dodged-a-bullet-when-china-slowed

 

[Nike]

HSBC more optimistic about Indonesia`s economy
Kamis, 12 Mei 2016 20:44 WIB | 1.638 Views

Jakarta (ANTARA News) - HSBC has revised up its prediction of the countrys economic growth this year from 4.7 percent to 5 percent despite slowdown in the first three months of the year.

"HSBC is optimistic about the countrys economic growth this year. The key factor is increase in inflow of foreign investment resulting in a strong growth in to successive quarters," HSBC economist for ASEAN, Su Sian Lim , said here on Thursday.

Su Sian Lim was speaking at HSBC Economic Outlook 2016 titled "ASEAN Economic Community: Indonesia to Punch Above Its Weight".

He said the slowdown in 2015 and early 2016 was caused by commodity price fall and weak exports on slump in the global market.

"However, Indonesian economy has shown signs of recovery. For that purpose it is necessary to continue to the push for reform to attract more investment, improve productivity and encourage new sources of growth," he said.

In addition, he called for more liberal regulations, accelerate infrastructure development and boost development of small and medium enterprises.

Indonesia ranks among the toughest ASEAN countries together with Myanmar, Laos, Vietnam, and the Philippines in facing the global crisis, he said.

"They have proved they are able to weather the difficult period as obvious from their Gross Domestic Product (GDP) growth averaging more than 4.3 percent," he said.

He said the Indonesian government has been effective in its efforts to boost infrastructure development by allowing projects to be financed and auctioned ahead of the fiscal year.

"However, the government should not rely only for growth on infrastructure spending especially as the public works ministry is a bit slow in implementation, although the determination shown by the government in reaching the target in infrastructure development has reached concrete result," he said.(*)

http://www.antaranews.com/en/news/104635/hsbc-more-optimistic-about-indonesias-economy

 

[Nike]

Govt preparing transportation for lebaran travelers
Sabtu, 14 Mei 2016 12:54 WIB | 420 Views
Pewarta: Andi Abdussalam

Jakarta (ANTARA News) - In keeping with the practice followed in the past, the government is preparing various modes of transportation for those traveling during the post-fasting Eid ul-Fitr, referred to as Lebaran travelers.

These are people traveling to their home towns for the festivities.

As the number of passengers is expected to increase this year, the government is preparing various means of transportation, including air, sea or land.

Public Information and Communications Bureau Chief of the Ministry of Transportation, JA Barata said recently that Transport Minister Ignasius Jonan has set the Lebaran transportation period from June 24 to July 17, 2016 for land, air and train transportation modes.

For the sea transportation mode, the Lebaran transportation period will be from June 18 to July 24, 2016.

"The period for the sea transportation service will be longer because transportation through sea also takes much longer," Barata noted.

He said the minister had also ordered the director general in the transportation sector to conduct ramp checks in their respective fields before the start of the transportation season during the Lebaran traveler exodus.

He said the transportation ministry will also provide free ride on trains for motorcyclists during the 2016 Lebaran transportation program.

The trains will have a capacity to carry 15,000 motorcycles for free motorist ride, up almost three folds compared to that of last year.

As for the capacity of trucks (for motorcycles) and buses (for passengers), it is still to be decided. The ministry of transportation is also considering scrapping the free-ride usually offered to motorcyclists through the sea transportation mode because it is not effective and is an inefficient method.

"The free-ride for motorcyclists offered through sea transportation mode in the past has now been shifted to trains by increasing the transportation capacity from 10 thousand motorcycles to 15 thousand units," Barata said.

He said the preparations being made in the run-up to the Lebaran transportation season this year are part of Transport Minister Jonans efforts to increase the quality of the transportation services for the people. Priority will be given to safety and security, he said.

Based on the data with the directorate general of land

transportation, the number of such travelers will increase across all modes of transportation, except land transportation, this year.

The number of ferry passengers is expected to increase by 3.54 percent to 3.7 million passengers from 3.5 million in 2015.

Train transportation mode will see an increase in the number of passengers by 4.63 percent to 4.1 million from 3.9 million during the Lebaran season last year.

The number of travelers opting for the sea transportation mode is expected to increase by 2.9 percent to 910,191 from 883,681 last year.

The number of passengers flying to their home towns during the 2016 Eid ul-Fitr festivities is expected to go up by 7.62 percent to 4.6 million from 4.3 million last year.

Director for Multi-Mode Transportation Service of the Land Transportation Directorate General Cucu Mulyana opined that the decrease in the number of public transportation passengers was due to the availability of other means of transportation.

Cucu said this year they would not provide free-ride facility in the sea transportation sector because it did not attract too many Eid ul-Fitr revelers. "It was noticed that Lebaran travelers are not interested in the sea transportation services because it involves a long voyage and the cost is relatively high," he stated.

Directorate General of Land Transportation Pudji Hartanto Iskandar said during the 2016 Lebaran transportation season, his office will provide free travel services to motorcyclists. This will cover a total of 12,000 motorcycles and 24,000 passengers.

For such free-ride services, the directorate general of land transportation has set aside a budget worth Rp20 billion.

The quota comprises 8,400 motorcycles with 16,000 passengers for home-bound journey and 3,600 motorcycles with 7,200 passengers during the return journey.

The motorists quota for free-ride service was increased by 275 percent this year, compared to that in 2015 when only 3,200 motorcycles were allowed a free-ride.

The free-ride program for motorcyclists this year will serve routes to nine cities in Java, namely Tegal, Kebumen, Purwokerto, Yogyakarta, Solo, Wonogiri, Wonosobo, Magelang and Semarang. The routes for the return flow will take cyclists to three cities of Yogyakarta, Solo and Semarang.

For those headed home, trucks carrying the motorcycles will depart first on July 1, 2016 while buses carrying the motorcycles passengers will depart the following day, July 2, 2016. Vehicles carrying motorcycles will depart from the office of state-owned logistics board, Bulog, in Kelapa Gading, North Jakarta, while buses carrying passengers will depart from Indonesia in Miniature Park (TMII) in East Jakarta.

"For the return journey, motorcycles will leave their destination towns on July 16, 2016 while passengers will leave on July 17, 2016," the director general said.

In the meantime, State-owned railway company PT KAI has forecast the train passengers during the Idul Fitri Islamic Holiday season this year to reach some 5.3 million, or a 5.5 percent increase from 5.1 million in 2015.

Some 217,364 seats would be provided daily, compared to 214,048 seats per day during last years Idul Fitri holiday, President Director of PT KAI Edi Sukmoro informed the press.

"This step is taken to meet the spike in demand for modes of transportation for Idul Fitri," he noted. The Idul Fitri railway service will be offered for 22 days from June 26 to July 17, 2016.

The peak of homebound flow will be on July 2, or four days prior to the Idul Fitri, while the inbound flow will peak on July 10, three days after the celebration.(*)

http://www.antaranews.com/en/news/104666/govt-preparing-transportation-for-lebaran-travelers

 

[Reashot Xigwin]

Indonesia ramps up battle against bureaucracy

2 0 0 0
by Qingzhen Chen , May 14, 2016

Indonesia’s 12th economic policy package is the latest effort to facilitate doing business in the country. Strong political will must complement consistent implementation.

Announced by the President Jokowi himself, the new economic policy package continues to deregulate the economy amid slow growth. The current package slashes the number of required permits, and cuts down processing time to set up a new business.

Improving ease of doing business is one of the main goals of President Jokowi’s efforts to rejuvenate the economy, along with his other two promises: increasing government spending on infrastructure and implementing economic reforms.

With at least one package announced each month since September 2015, the series of economic policy packages simplifies the process to start a new business; with priority given to small and medium enterprises, a key pillar of the Indonesian economy alongside cooperative and state-owned enterprises.

Policy package to address World Banks’ ten indicators of doing business
Despite being the largest economy in Southeast Asia, Indonesia is ranked one of the most difficult countries to do business in (especially among its neighbours), according to the World Bank. The president has vowed to improve the current ranking of 109 to 40 by 2017 (out of a World Bank list of 189 economies).



According the World Bank’s ten indicators (see details below) on the ease of doing business, Indonesia’s rankings are worst in the categories: starting a business, dealing with construction permits, registering property, paying taxes, and enforcement of contracts.

Prior to the tranches of economic stimulus packages, waiting time for the approval of various licenses was 156 days, later shortened to 132 days. The amount of procedures was reduced from 94 to 49.

Deregulations will benefit SMEs but consistent implementation key
Ongoing efforts to deregulate Indonesia’s economy should ease the process of doing business in the country and boost Jakarta’s appeal to both domestic and foreign investment.

Small and medium sized business will be able to benefit from the condensed procedures, such as moving tax payment online, and shorter export processing times. This significantly cuts down the burden of tedious paperwork, especially for small business.

Start ups will also benefit from an investment climate that is now more conducive to starting a business, with less bureaucracy, and easier access to credit. While the latest economic figures are disappointing, economic activities and investments will gradually pick up.

GDP grew 4.92 percent for the first quarter of 2016, below both market and government forecasts; with the former predicting between 5.01-5.2%, and the latter estimating 5.1%. Private consumption, which accounts for 58% of the country’s GDP, expanded less than 5 percent, at 4.94%. Government spending, which did not gain real momentum until late 2015 after the cabinet reshuffle in August last year, grew by only 2.93%.

Despite slower than expected growth, the business environment and investment climate have improved over the last few months, thanks to the administration’s strong political will in pushing through recent economic reforms.

Consequently, the Investment Coordinating Board of the Republic of Indonesia (BKPM), the primary interface between business and government, has carried out intensive investment promotions in many countries in Asia, Europe, and America.

Moreover, President Jokowi recently finished a tour of several EU countries including Germany, the UK, Belgium and the Netherlands, which led to the signing of several business-to-business agreements and has strengthened trade and investment.

The investment community is well aware of discrepancies in the planning and implementation of government policy in Indonesia. Strong political will is a positive sign. Now investors would like to see the government remain consistent in executing economic policy.

 

[Nike]

RI focuses on industrialization cooperation with S Korea: Jokowi
Selasa, 17 Mei 2016 05:18 WIB | 630 Views

Seoul, S Korea (ANTARA News) - Indonesian government will focus on cooperating with South Korea to ensure rapid industrialization, according to visiting President Joko Widodo (Jokowi) here on Monday.

"In the bilateral talks (with South Korea) just now, Indonesia expressed a wish to cooperate in order to enhance the pace of industrialization in the country and develop its creative industry," President Jokowi said here on Monday in a joint press statement with South Korean President Park Geun-hye at the Cheong Wa Dae Palace in Seoul.

Such cooperation will cover a number of creative industries, such as fashion, movies, theater and broadcasting.

South Korea is a strategic and key partner of Indonesia in Asia, Jokowi said, adding that the bilateral cooperation on economy and industry was proceeding very well.

"Trade and investment between the two countries has been going on well. Just now, we talked about making investment in Indonesia. South Korea is very interested in making investments in areas such as toll roads, harbors, railway tracks, power plants and maritime infrastructure," Jokowi noted.

President Jokowi also asked the South Korean government to facilitate export of fruit from Indonesia.

In addition to the economic issues, Jokowi also expressed his appreciation of the South Korean government for cooperation in the political and legal spheres so far.

"We also agree that security and regional stability are absolute in the Korean Peninsula, and Indonesia requests North Korea to abide by all resolutions of the United Nations Security Council," Jokowi pointed out.

Indonesia and South Korea also agreed to cooperate in information exchange in an effort to overcome the problem of terrorism.

In his speech, President Jokowi also invited the South Korean President to visit Indonesia.

On this occasion, representatives of the two governments signed seven Memorandums of Understanding (MoUs), covering cooperation for a Special Economic Zone, creative industries, maritime cooperation, sports, peat land management, infrastructure development and geospatial data, land administration as well as MoUs on corruption eradication.(*)

http://www.antaranews.com/en/news/1...strialization-cooperation-with-s-korea-jokowi

 

[Nike]

http://www.antaranews.com/en/news/1...ans-for-trans-sumatra-trans-sulawesi-railways

China offers Rp80 trillion loans for Trans Sumatra, Trans Sulawesi railways
Rabu, 18 Mei 2016 05:09 WIB | 652 Views

Jakarta (ANTARA News) - China has offered Rp80 trillion worth of loans to finance the construction of Trans Sulawesi and Trans Sumatra railway projects, a transportation ministry official said.

"They have agreed to extend loans worth Rp40 trillion for Trans Sumatra and Trans Sulawesi railway projects each," Director General of Railway at the Transportation Ministry Prasetyo Boeditjahjono informed here on Tuesday.

China is still considering the results of studies conducted by the ministry regarding the projects, he said.

"They will review the results of the studies conducted more than five years ago," he said.

He said a feasibility study of several segments of the projects was conducted, and detailed engineering designs of these projects have been completed.

The segment in respect of which detailed engineering designs have been completed included the Rantau Rapat-Duri-Duri-Pekan Baru section of Trans Sumatra railway, he said.

Hopefully, China will complete its study of the projects in less than one year, he said.

He said a Chinese delegation had approached the ministry to seek the results of studies on Trans Sulawesi and Trans Sumatra railways.

"I have promised to give them the results of the studies this month because they intend to consult with China Exim Bank," he said.

The documents are still with the secretariat of the directorate general of railway, he said.

"The documents included trace data at the directorate of traffic and detailed engineering design at the directorate of infrastructure. It takes us time and I have pledged to give them these this very month," he said.(*)

 

[Nusantara]

 

[Nike]

Construction of Makassar`s newport 27% completed
Sabtu, 21 Mei 2016 17:37 WIB | 458 Views

Progress of Makassar New Port, South Sulawesi. (INAPort)

Makassar (ANTARA News) - Construction of the first phase of Makassars New Port (MNP) has been 27 percent completed, an official of the state owned port operator Pelindo IV said.

"Completion has exceeded prediction of 25 percent after the project was commissioned by President Joko Widodo a year ago," a director of Pelindo IV Susantono said here on Friday.

The MNP project is part of the sea toll program of the government, Susantono said.

He said so far Rp48 billion had been spent on the project, which is estimated to cost Rp326 billion for the first phase of construction.

He said the first phase of construction is to be completed in 2018 to be continued with the second phase that would bring the total cost to Rp1.8 trillion from the state budget.

Implementation of the project followed a survey made in 1998 which said that in the 2,000s, the Makassar port would have a designed capacity to accommodate 400,000 TEUS of goods.

However, by the end of 2015 , the capacity already reached 560,000 TEUS exceeding the designed capacity. The capacity is even expected to expand further to 600,000 TEUS in 2016-2017.

Considering the developments, it is necessary to build an integrated port of MNP. Apart from having larger accommodating capacity, the port would have facility to connect it with toll road and Trans-Sulawesi railway station.

Construction of the MNP project is in line with the Presidential regulation No.3 of 2016 on acceleration of infrastructure development.
(Uu.H-ASG/H-YH)

http://www.antaranews.com/en/news/104808/construction-of-makassars-newport-27-completed

 

[Nike]

Russia interested in building railway transport facility in Kalimantan
Sabtu, 21 Mei 2016 22:25 WIB | 685 Views

Jakarta (ANTARA News) - Russia is interested in building railway mass transport facility in Kalimantan, Coordinating Minister for Economy Darmin Nasution said here on Saturday.

Minister of State Enterprises Rini Soemarno is still in Russia to discuss more details about the project, Darmin said upon arrival from that country at Halim Perdana Kusuma airport.

Darmin and Rini were included in the delegation headed by President Joko Widodo (Jokowi) to attend Russian-Asean summit meeting in Russia.

Rini would see the factory and check the Russian speed train, which was said to have a speed of 250 kilometers per hour, Darmin said.

He said during his stay in Russia, President Jokowi and entourage had one on one meeting with big Russian companies.

Among the companies were Russian Railways , which already has a contract to build a coal railway in Kalimantan , he said.

He said opportunities are wide open for cooperation between state companies of the two countries such as railway companies.

In the one on one meeting Russian investors expressed interest in building oil refinery and petrochemical factories, he said.

"Investment and business plans would be in large scale in petrochemical industry to become an export base in addition to supplying domestic requirement," the minister said.

Russian investors also were interested in cooperation with Inalum, the state-owned aluminum smelter in Asahan, to build aluminum downstream industry.

"Russian President Vladimir Putin seems to know much about projects Indonesia needs to build," he said, adding most of the Russian investors are state companies.

He said the Russian investors are all serious, adding they need only blessing from the government.

On Thursday, an agreement would be signed on the petrochemical and oil refinery projects between Pertamina and Russian counterpart, he cited.

Before flying to Russia, President Jokowi and his entourage visited South Korea to promote bilateral business and economic cooperation.

Darmin said the Indonesian delegation, which included a number of business leaders, talked with hundreds of Korean business leaders in a business forum and business luncheon.

"In the business luncheon we talked with Korean investors who have business in Indonesia and those seeking to invest in the country," he said.

He said Lotte, which has supermarket in Indonesia plans to expand its business in the country, adding, "They want to invest in petrochemical industry.

Koreas steel giant Posco also plans to expand cooperation with state-owned steel maker PT Krakatau Steel.(*)

http://www.antaranews.com/en/news/1...ding-railway-transport-facility-in-kalimantan

 

[cirr]

Wed May 25, 2016 3:50am EDT

Related: FINANCIALS, INDUSTRIALS

Indonesia Lippo says to build $14 bln industrial park with China firms

May 25 Indonesian conglomerate Lippo Group said it will partner two Chinese firms to build a 190 trillion rupiah ($13.95 billion) industrial park in West Java.

Chinese companies have been stepping up their investment in Southeast Asia's biggest economy, particularly in the infrastructure sector, which has been identified by President Joko Widodo's administration as a priority.

Property developer PT Lippo Cikarang Tbk, one of Lippo Group's listed companies, will work with Shenzhen Yantian Port Group Co Ltd and Country Garden Holdings Co Ltd to develop the Indonesia-Shenzhen Industrial Estate, Lippo said in a statement dated May 24.

While Lippo said the project will have a "total investment value" of 190 trillion rupiah, it did not give details about how much each company will be investing in the project, how it will be funded or by when it will be completed.

The two Chinese companies are "essential conduits" to help attract other large Chinese businesses to build new facilities in Indonesia, Lippo said.

Country Garden has signed a memorandum of understanding for the industrial park, an official who declined to be named due to the company's policy told Reuters in a text message. He declined to comment on the investment size, adding that terms and details will depend on negotiations.

Shenzhen Yantian Port was not immediately available to comment. ($1 = 13,620.00 rupiah) (Reporting by Eveline Danubrata and Cindy Silviana in Jakarta; Additional reporting by Clare Jim in Hong Kong; Editing by Muralikumar Anantharaman)