Indonesia Economy Forum

[prima99]

Indonesian Government to Tender 3 Geothermal Energy Projects in October | Indonesia Investments

23 September 2015

The government of Indonesia will tender three geothermal energy projects in October 2015. These three projects are the Way Ratai (South Sumatra), Bukit Kili (West Sumatra), and Marana (Central Sulawesi) fields. Indonesia is estimated to contain about 40 percent of the world’s geothermal reserves and therefore entails great potential for this energy source. However, Southeast Asia’s largest economy only utilizes approximately 4.7 percent (1,403 megawatts) of its total geothermal capacity (29,475 megawatts).

In recent years, the Indonesian government has stepped up efforts to tap its geothermal resources. In 2015 and 2016 the government aims to offer a total of 26 geothermal power projects to investors. If successful, this would more than double domestic geothermal power generation.

Earlier this year, the government of Indonesia had tendered the Gunung Lawu (East Java) and Danau Ranau (South Sumatra) geothermal fields. In December 2015, the government is set to announce the winner of the Gunung Lawu field. Several companies, including Pertamina Geothermal Energi, Star Energi, Ormat, Sari Prima Energi, and Bumi Energi are in competition over control of this field.

The Danau Ranau field, on the other hand, only attracted one bidder and therefore the government will repeat the tender process in an attempt to attract more bidders.

 

[prima99]

Russia Reportedly to Invest $34m in East Kalimantan Railway, Infrastructure | Jakarta Globe

Balikpapan, East Kalimantan. The provincial government of East Kalimantan says Russian investors plan to spend Rp 500 trillion ($33.9 billion) on a railway, bridges and various other infrastructure there.

Bere Ali, an assistant to the provincial administration secretary, said on Friday that the Russians were willing to invest without the need for the local government to put up any money of its own.

Russia’s biggest rail and locomotive company, Russian Railways, earlier completed a feasibility study to build tracks stretching almost 190 kilometers from West Kutai to Balikpapan – Indonesia’s coal and oil hubs, respectively.

Bere said this could start as a freight or a passenger railway, depending on market demand. He added that East Kalimantan Governor Awang Farouk Ishak had checked the kinds of trains that could be used on the line during a visit to Russia recently.

“When the railway is ready, whichever type of train is chosen will be OK. It will depend on the market demand – whether they want coal first, or passenger service first,” Bere said.

He also claimed that Russian investors planned to build 23 bridges across the province. “They will also build a science park and invest in many other projects,” he said.

Bere said the local administration and Russia had also discussed the possibility of developing a nuclear power plant in East Kalimantan, possibly involving Russia’s Rosatom. Any such plan, however, would require approval from the central government.

The Jakarta Globe was unable to confirm any of these stated plans with the Russian Embassy.

 

[Aepsilons]

View attachment 256753

Beautiful !!!!!!

View attachment 256753

Beautiful !!!!!!

Jakarta MRT

Merdeka ! Merdeka ! Merdeka !

 

[Nike]

RI to import 1.5 million
tons rice from Thailand,
Vietnam
Rendi A. Witular, The Jakarta Post, New York | Business | Fri, September 25 2015, 5:17 PM

The devastating impact of El Niño has forced the government to import rice from neighboring countries as prolonged drought has caused harvest failures in several rice producing regions, Vice President Jusuf Kalla says.

Kalla said on Tuesday that the State Logistics Agency (Bulog) was currently in the process of purchasing around 1.5 million tons of rice from Thailand and Vietnam following concern on rising prices of the staple food that could cause social unrest.

“I would like to emphasize that we are forced to import because of the drought. We’re taking rice issues very seriously. We could delay imports of chilies or shallots, but when it comes to rice, we’re not playing around,” he said.

Indonesia is the world’s third-biggest consumer of rice after China and India, with rice production expected to be below the 45 million tons targeted for this year.

President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo initially targeted the country to be self-sufficient in rice within the third year of his tenure, while Kalla was optimistic the target was achievable within two years if drought was not factored in.

Agriculture Minister Amran Sulaiman has taken the target to the extreme as he believed no imports were needed for this year despite the drought and has sternly opposed any attempts to import.

“Amran has retracted his statement and has agreed to the imports. His main responsibility is to produce as much as rice as possible. When it comes to ensuring supply and price stabilization, Bulog has the sole authority,” said Kalla in response to questions over Amran’s disagreement over imports.

Bulog recently said it had been buying rice and unhusked rice at premium prices from local farmers.

Kalla said he would not repeat the mistake made by former president Soeharto in late 1997 when he failed to promptly respond to shortages in rice supply amid the worst drought recorded in decades due to El Niño.

Skyrocketing prices of rice were partly blamed for triggering social unrest that led to Soeharto’s resignation in May, 1998.

“The government at that time always assured the public that everything was OK until they were struck by the food shortage. Although they were late to import, some 7 million tons were brought in in 1997 and another 5 million tons in 1999 in response to the problem,” he said.

Low-income people will be the hardest hit by soaring rice prices as food accounts for around 60 percent of their living costs, while mid- and high-income consumers only spend 20 percent of their living costs on food, according to Kalla.

Many areas in West Java and East Java reported last week rising rice prices by as much as 10 percent due to supply shortages.

“But when we’ve decided to import, the prices have suddenly declined now,” said Kalla.

Local think thank the Institute for Development of Economics and Finance (Indef) has found that several welfare indicators, including food prices, wages and the unemployment rate, all point to a general suffering resulting from the country’s sluggish economy, which recently shrank to its slowest level in six years.

Volatile food prices in the country’s official consumer price index (CPI) surged 8.97 percent in July, compared with an overall inflation rate of 7.26 percent. While it may reflect rising prices for Idul Fitri festivities, food inflation has so far this year been much higher than overall inflation.

Volatile food prices went up by 2.47 percent this year as of July, while the headline inflation rate was still at 1.9 percent, data from the Central Statistics Agency (BPS) has revealed.
________________________________

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- See more at: RI to import 1.5 million tons rice from Thailand, Vietnam | The Jakarta Post

- See more at: RI to import 1.5 million tons rice from Thailand, Vietnam | The Jakarta Post

 

[prima99]

Indonesia reopens door to NZ beef imports | Radio New Zealand News

Indonesian media are reporting that trade officials there have done a u-turn on efforts to cut down imports of beef from New Zealand.

Photo: RNZ / Diego Opatowski

The Indonesian Trade Ministry has issued permits for the State Logistics Agency to import as much as 10,000 tonnes of beef from New Zealand.

The ministry said it wanted to stabilise meat prices in the country, and New Zealand was chosen because the price of beef from here was lower than the cost of Australian meat.

Beef exports to Indonesia have see-sawed in recent years. They reached a high in 2010 when Indonesia was New Zealand's second-largest beef market, then worth $185 million.

But exports had dropped to a trickle in recent years, and both New Zealand and the United States were challenging Indonesia's import restrictions through complaints to the World Trade Organisation.

 

[MarveL]

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MOTOGP
Sentul race track seeks to host MotoGP

JAKARTA. Sentul International Circuit in Bogor, West Java, is aiming to secure a spot on the 2017 MotoGP series calendar and will thus undergo a renovation to attain the top-grade status required to host the event.

The opportunity to host the MotoGP is still open as the contract signing deadline with Dorna Sports, the commercial rights holder of MotoGP, is on Oct. 21.

"Currently we are still waiting for official support from the government regarding our readiness to host the MotoGP. Hopefully we can complete the letter of intent within the week," said the circuit’s management director Tinton Soeprapto on Monday as quoted by Antara news agency.

He added that the plans had received support from the Tourism Ministry, but not yet from the Youth and Sports Ministry.

“The letter of intent is very important. The [new] design of the circuit must also be ready by then,” said Tinton Soeprapto.

According to Tinton, around 50 percent of the circuit would have to be renovated. World-class circuit designers have been called on for support in the renovation efforts.

Regarding the project’s funding, Tinton made examples of Singapore and Malaysia, which relied on the government's support.

"Many countries, such as India and South Korea, are eyeing [hosting rights to] the MotoGP. We should take advantage of this opportunity since I'm optimistic that there are many benefits to be gained," said Tinton.

Separately, Indonesian Motorsports Association (IMI) chairman Nanan Soekarna suggested the project should not to use the state budget (APBN) due to the current economic slowdown.

"I think the best way [to fund the renovation] is through a consortium, though we still need the government's policy support before we gain the support of sole agents [ATPM]," said Nanan on Monday as quoted by tribunnews.com.

He added that the budget needed for the project was around Rp 300 billion (US$20.63 million), excluding the Dorna Sports cooperation fee. (rad/kes)

Sentul race track seeks to host MotoGP



ECONOMY FORECAST
Economy forecast to grow 4.9% in Q3: BI

JAKARTA. Bank Indonesia predicted the country's economy would grow 4.9% in the third quarter of this year - a better performance than in the previous quarter.

"Our prediction is that the economic growth rate is higher in the third quarter," Executive Director of the Central Bank Juda Agung said here on Friday.

Juda said the stronger growth in the third quarter was indicated by a number of data such as 14% increase in cement sales and significant increase in the imports of capital goods.

"Imports of steel rose 60% indicating that the government spending is on the increase," Juda said.

He said he is confident that the economic performance will continue to improve in the rest of the year, adding the growth could grow higher than 5 percent in the last quarter of the year.

"The economy is rebounding and this would have good impact on rupiah," he added.

In the previous two 1uarters , the country's economy was hit by slump with growth of 4.72% in the first and 4.67% in the second quarter.

Economy forecast to grow 4.9% in Q3: BI

 

[kuge]

indonesia rejected japanese high speed rail proposal & turned to china's..

 

[Dungeness]

indonesia rejected japanese high speed rail proposal & turned to china's..

Indonesia chooses Chinese railway system
Asia
Sep. 29, 2015 - Updated 01:38 UTC-7

Indonesia has conveyed to Japan it will adopt China's high-speed railway system over Japan's. Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga has expressed grave regret over the decision.

Japan and China have been in fierce competition to win the contract for a railway linking Indonesia's capital Jakarta and the city of Bandung, about 140 kilometers away.

On Tuesday, Suga met in Tokyo with the head of Indonesia's National Development Planning Board, Sofyan Djalil, who is visiting Japan as a special envoy for President Joko Widodo.

Sofyan explained that his government earlier this month rejected offers from both Japan and China due to their huge costs.
He said that China later made a new offer to build a railway system without any financial burden on Indonesia. He added the Indonesian government would like to welcome the Chinese proposal.

Suga replied it is regrettable that Japan's proposal was not chosen, because he is confident it was the most feasible one.

Suga noted Indonesia had promised equal opportunity in presenting offers. He said that Japan finds it hard to understand why that policy was suddenly overturned in China's favor.




Indonesia chooses Chinese railway system - News - NHK WORLD - English

 

[pr1v4t33r]

Layanan KRL Jabodetabek mulai dibenahi sedikit-demi sedikit. Preview salah satu progress perbaikan stasiun, parung panjang. Progress pengerjaan masih berlangsung.

SkyscraperCity - View Single Post - Indonesia | Trains & National Railways | 7

 

[pr1v4t33r]

 

[MarveL]

Jakart MRT Underground Station reach 45% completion.
Friday 2 Oktober 2015

 

[Nike]

W. Papua prepares to build thermal power plant
Jumat, 2 Oktober 2015 17:31 WIB | 936 Views

Photo document of natural gas liquefaction facilities in Tangguh LNG in Bintuni Bay, West Papua. Tangguh LNG has reserves of 16 trillion cubic feet (tcf) while the average production of 1.4 billion cubic feet per day (bcfd) and has sent more than 600 cargoes of LNG to the local market and exports to Asia and America. (ANTARA/Muhammad Adimaja)

Manokwari (ANTARA News) - The West Papua provincial administration is preparing a plan to build a thermal power plant, which will utilize the gas produced by an oil and gas company operating in Bintuni Bay district.

Head of the Mining and Energy Office John Tulus stated here on Friday that the gas to power the plant will be provided by British Petroleum, which operates in Tangguh, Bintuni Bay district.

"This power plant will have the capacity to generate 100 megawatts of power," he added.

According to Tulus, the plant will be able to meet the electricity needs of the entire district and city in West Papua.

The office has been drafting a local regulation on the establishment of a province-owned enterprise that will manage the steam power plant.

Tulus explained that the West Papua provincial administration and the Ministry of Energy and Mineral Resources have signed a memorandum of understanding regarding the power plant project.

Head of Transportation, Communication and Information Office Heriawan Susanto remarked that a railway line is being constructed in West Papua in accordance with the development plan of the power plant.

He pointed out that the rail network will be connected to Bintuni Bay. In fact, the train network connecting to the district is one of the main railway lines in the province.

If the rail network is connected, the trains will be able to transport the mineral and gas commodities to and from Bintuni Bay.

"The transportation of gas using a railway link will be more effective and efficient as compared to using ships," Heriawan added.
(Uu.KR-LWA/INE/KR-BSR/F001)

W. Papua prepares to build thermal power plant - ANTARA News

 

[Nike]

Honda opens first engine
test facility in Indonesia
The Jakarta Post, Karawang, West Java | Business | Thu, October 01 2015, 5:45 PM

New factory: PT Honda Prospect Motor (HPM) marketing and aftersales director Jonfis Fandy president director Tomoki Uchida, vice-president director Hidekazu Tsunemi, senior vice-president director Benawati PT Honda Prospect Motor (HPM), a joint venture between Japan’s Honda Motor Co. and Indonesia’s Prospect Motor, inaugurated its first engine test bench facility in Indonesia on Wednesday as it seeks to cut costs and scale up efficiency.

The company’s marketing and after sales service director, Jonfis Fandy, said the new facility, located in Karawang, West Java, was part of the company’s program to boost efficiency by cutting operational costs and shifting to local components amid the domestic economic slowdown and weaker rupiah.

“The new facility will reduce the cost of production per unit of car,” Jonfis said after the inauguration of the new facility.

In the past, the company conducted engine tests in Thailand, India and Japan, which cost more for cars sold on the Indonesian market.

“With the existence of the new facility, engine testing can now be carried out domestically in a relatively shorter period of time,” the company said in a statement.

HPM engine senior manager Agus Santo Mulyawan said the facility would be used to measure engine power performance and test engine endurance. The new facility will also be used to test components that the company produces locally.

Apart from the new engine test facility, HPM is also currently building a crankshaft factory near its Cikarang plant. The factory, capable of producing up to 243,000 crankshafts a year, is expected to be ready in September next year.

HPM is investing a total of Rp 500 billion (US$34.2 million) in the two facilities. The company declined to reveal the breakdown of the total investment.

“The investment will contribute to improving our production quality control as well as supporting our localization program,” HPM president director Tomoki Uchida said.

According to Jonfis, the opening of a crankshaft factory next year will increase the company’s local content to about 85 percent from around 70 percent at present. He said that for the time being the company would mostly import crankshafts from India.

HPM has reiterated its commitment to increasing its locally produced components, as the rupiah plunged to levels unseen since the 1998 financial crisis to around Rp 14,700, the second-worst performing currency in the region after the Malaysian ringgit, which has added to costs for importers.

Besides constructing the two facilities, HPM also has a plan to roll out a connecting-rod component factory in 2018.

Jonfis did not elaborate on the impact of the ongoing domestic economic slowdown on the company’s sales, other than to say that it affected HPM sales only slightly.

Indonesia’s economic growth slowed to a six-year low level of 4.67 percent in the second quarter of this year. Automotive sales, a key indicator for domestic consumption in Southeast Asia’s largest economy, fell 6.4 percent year-on-year (yoy) in August after suffering a 39.1 percent slump in July yoy.

Jonfis explained further that the company now relied on the sales of low cost green cars (LCGC), multiple people carriers and SUVs.

“We predict that the two types [LCGC and SUV] will still be customers’ favorites until next year because we see their sales are increasing while sales of other types are decreasing,” he said.

When asked whether the economic slowdown and weak rupiah would impact car prices, Jonfis said that raising prices would be the last option the company would take.

“Increasing prices is normally the last choice for any auto company. For us now, we are more into increasing efficiency,” he said. (saf) - See more at: Honda opens first engine test facility in Indonesia | The Jakarta Post and production director Yosanto converse while observing the installation of a crankshaft at the company’s plant complex in Cikarang, West Java, on Wednesday. The factory, capable of producing up to 243,000 crankshfts a year, is expected to begin operations next year.(Antara/Zarqoni Maksum)
- See more at: Honda opens first engine test facility in Indonesia | The Jakarta Post

 

[MarveL]

Gross domestic product in Vietnam and the Philippines will expand by more than 6 percent this year and next, the fastest among major economies in Southeast Asia, the Asian Development Bank forecast last month. Indonesia's economy will probably grow 5.4 percent in 2016, while Malaysia's economy is seen expanding 4.9 percent.

Vietnam's Communists School Indonesia's Capitalists on Economy - Bloomberg Business

 

[MarveL]

Indonesian interested in exploring business and investment opportunities in Viet Nam

HA NOI (VNS) — Indonesian firms are interested in exploring business and investment opportunities in Viet Nam as the two countries strengthen their economic partnership, according to Jean Anes, Indonesian Consul General to HCM City.

Viet Nam and Indonesia had set a target of US$10 billion in trade by 2018. Both countries were active in efforts to remove tariff barriers to boost trade, service and tourism links, Anes noted at a business connection forum in HCM City.

Farah Ratnadewi Indriani, deputy head of the Indonesia Investment Co-ordinating Board, said Indonesia was currently improving its investment environment and calling for foreign investors with attractive preferential policies.

Foreign investors in Indonesia would enjoy tax exemptions for between five and 20 years, she said, adding that the country was implementing administrative reforms with one-stop-shop models and reducing the time needed to grant investment licences to three days.

She also said potential sectors awaiting investors included infrastructure, agriculture, seaports, tourism and mining.

At the same time, Ho Xuan Lam, deputy head of the HCM City Trade and Investment Promotion Centre, said businesses in both countries were expanding their trade and investment partnerships in various fields.

In the first nine months of this year, bilateral trade reached nearly $3.5 billion, up 6 per cent over the same period last year, he said. — VNS

VN, Indonesia forge stronger connections - Economy - VietNam News