Indones'a Industries thread [Archive]

Alvin

October 8th, 2004, 03:21 AM

Audi akan rakit kendaraan di Indonesia

SINGAPURA (Bloomberg): Audi AG, unit mobil mewah Volkswagen AG (VW), mempertimbangkan Indonesia menjadi basis perakitan mobilnya guna menggenjot penjualan di kawasan Asia Tenggara.
Ralph Weyler, Head of Marketing and Sales Audi, mengatakan pihaknya tengah melakukan pembicaraan untuk membahas rencana lokalisasi produksi di salah satu negara Asean seperti Indonesia, Thailand atau Malaysia.

"Keputusan perakitan tersebut akan diambil pada bulan mendatang," ujarnya kepada pers di Singapura, kemarin.

Perakitan di Asean, menurut dia, dimaksudkan untuk menekan komponen biaya bea masuk (BM) sehingga membuat mobil Audi mampu bersaing di kawasan tersebut.

Sejauh ini, lanjutnya, mobil Audi yang dipasarkan di sejumlah kawasan Asean, termasuk Indonesia merupakan mobil impor utuh (completely built-up/CBU) dari Jerman.

"Di kawasan Asean, kami sangat terbebani oleh BM yang tinggi. Salah satu cara Audi meningkatkan daya saing adalah melakukan lokalisasi produksi," ujarnya.

Asean telah menyetujui pemangkasan tarif BM perdagangan lintas negara anggota melalui skema Asia Free Trade Area (AFTA) yang menjadi daya tarik bagi investor menanamkan modalnya di pasar yang besar.

Daya tarik

Presdir Indomobil Grup Gunadi Sindhuwinata mengatakan Indonesia memiliki daya tarik lebih dibandingkan dengan negara lain dari sisi potensi pasar yang besar maupun kemampuan melakukan perakitan.

"Dibandingkan dengan negara lain di Asean, penjualan Audi di Indonesia jumlahnya paling banyak. Ini beberapa keunggulan yang dimiliki Indonesia," tuturnya.

Namun, menurut dia, ada beberapa faktor lain yang cukup menentukan yakni ketersediaan infrastruktur pendukung kegiatan produksi dan perdagangan bisa berjalan secara efisien.

Gunadi mengingatkan bahwa berbagai faktor yang menciptakan iklim usaha yang kondusif sangat penting seperti kebijakan pemerintah dan masalah peraturan, hingga prosedur birokrasi dan perpajakan.

"Selain faktor keamanan, ini penting dan harus dibenahi, terutama untuk meyakinkan investor baru untuk menanamkan modalnya di sini," katanya.

Dia menilai rencana lokalisasi perakitan Audi tidak terlepas dari strategi prinsipal global untuk meningkatkan daya saingnya dengan cara menekan beban BM dan menghadirkan produk sesuai dengan kebutuhan pasar.

"BM harus disamakan. Akan lebih baik merakit mobilnya kalau di pasar pesaingnya menggunakan mobil rakitan," katanya.

Ralph menambahkan pabrikan mobil Eropa tersebut saat ini tengah berupaya keras meningkatkan penjualannya di beberapa kawasan yang sedang tumbuh pesat seperti China.

Di negara tersebut, menurut dia, Audi saat ini memproduksi mobil A4 di kawasan timur lalu kota China Changchun melalui kerja sama Volkswagen dan mitra lokalnya FAW Group Co.

Audi mengungkapkan sumbangan penjualan dari kawasan Asia diperkirakan mencapai 15% dari total penjualan globalnya pada 2006, naik dari angka saat ini hanya 11%.

Audi berencana untuk meluncurkan kendaraan jenis sport-utility vehicle, coupe dan berbagai model di Asia tahun depan.

"Sebagian besar peningkatan [penjualan] akan terlihat tahun depan seiring dengan peluncuran sejumlah produk baru yang diperkenalkan tahun ini," ujarnya Weyler.

Dia mengungkapkan penambahan peningkatan penjualan di Asia diproyeksikan di atas 10%. Untuk pasar China, angka penjualan diharapkan sama dengan tahun lalu sekitar 63.000 unit, karena pemerintah China mendorong perlambatan pertumbuhan ekonomi dan persaingan yang semakin ketat.

"Kami senang bila bisa merealisasikan angka penjualan yang hampir sama dengan tahun lalu, tetapi kami melihat kemungkinan untuk tumbuh karena permintaan mobil dan permintaan kendaraan mewah terus meningkat khususnya di kawasan Beijing dan Shanghai.

Audi diketahui tengah mengembangkan jaringan bisnisnya di Asia. Perusahaan tersebut pada akhir tahun ini akan membuka 3 unit penjualan di India. (mfm)

Alvin

October 9th, 2004, 11:58 AM

KEPCO to Build US$500 Million Power Plant in Indonesia
Korea Electric Power Corp. (KEPCO) plans to build a US$500 million thermal power plant in Indonesia by 2007, the Commerce, Industry and Energy Ministry announced Friday. The ministry said in a statement that the plan was discussed Friday during Commerce, Industry and Energy Minister Lee Hee-beom's visit to Indonesia.
KEPCO began planning the construction of the power plant at the request of Indonesia in 2002, when Indonesian President Megawati Sukarnoputri visited Korea. KEPCO concluded a memorandum of understanding with Indonesian counterpart in March 2003 to build a US$500 million 750-megawatt compound thermal power plant. The MOU also calls for KEPCO to import in return 3 million tons of gas per annum. KEPCO submitted to Indonesia a letter of intent on the project in September.

Daewoo International plans to participate in bituminous coal development in Indonesia, the firm said Friday. Daewoo International signed a memorandum of understanding with Gunnung Bayan Group of Indonesia Friday, under which they will jointly develop bituminous coal south of Kalimantan Island, Indonesia.

(Yeo Si-dong, sdyeo@chosun.com )

tata

October 9th, 2004, 12:43 PM

Audi akan rakit kendaraan di Indonesia

"Keputusan perakitan tersebut akan diambil pada bulan mendatang," ujarnya kepada pers di Singapura, kemarin.

well, I hope they select Indonesia. Good for employement. And.... I like Audi too!

sanhen

October 9th, 2004, 12:50 PM

David-80

October 9th, 2004, 05:00 PM

Thanks God Pertamina is not on the list, a corrupt company!

Anyway, another company should be on the top ten are Bank Mandiri,Medco Indonesia and Bank International Indonesia.

cheers

Yamauchi

October 11th, 2004, 04:59 PM

Indonesia to Produce Its First Corvette

SURABAYA, Indonesia, Oct 11 Asia Pulse - State-owned shipbuilding company PT PAL Indonesia said it will build a navy corvette at a cost of US$40 million in cooperation with 12 other state and private companies.
The corvette to be completed in 2007 will be first type of warship built in the country, PT PAL President H. Suryohadiprodjo said.

Suryohadiprodjo said the construction of corvette has long been programmed by the defense ministry and the navy.

He said most of the components are expected to be locally supplied by state-owned companies PT Krakatau Steel, PT Pindad, PT Inti, PT Len, PT Dirgantara Indonesia, PT Inka, PT Brata, and PT Pupuk Kaltim, and private companies PT Texmaco, PT Maspion Indalex , PT Mastrada Surya Surabaya and PT Guna Elektro Tadakara.

The 80.4 meter long and 12.2 meter wide warship will be built by PT PAL, designed jointly with Orrizonte Sistem Navali S.P.A (Ficantieri Shipyard) and Italian Navy Corvette.

Ara

October 11th, 2004, 05:16 PM

Does anybody know how big the diamond industry is in Indonesia? It seems that there is little law enforcement to ensure that the karrat is as big as the dealers say it is. The same with gold. There need to be a national auditor for berlians so we don't get robbed blind by freeport and other companies that mine for these valuable materials.

macgyver

October 12th, 2004, 06:23 AM

Top 10 Indonesian Company according to Far Easter Review magazine..

http://www.feer.com/articles/2003/0312_25/free/image/Asian_companies1.jpg

We know Indosat & BCA belong to overseas investor now. I am surprised to see Pertamina is not on the list. Regarding Sosro.. I heard Indonesian consume more Sosro than Coca Cola. Lol.

Sanhen .. can you give me the source ......
What are the criterias ....
Coz .. I doubt the Unilever Indonesia .. he he he ....
there are other bigger that Unilever Indonesia ....

Indonesian Like the Teh Botol much more the Coca Cola ....
:cheers:

[ Apapun Makanannya Minumnya Teh Botol Sosro ]
[ Whatever food you eat, the drink will always Teh Botol Sosro] :)

macgyver

October 12th, 2004, 06:29 AM

well, I hope they select Indonesia. Good for employement. And.... I like Audi too!

Unfortunately ... di Jakarta .. Audi doesn't work well ....
Kalah ama BMW en Mercy .... ( maksudnya kalah gengsi .......)

You know di INdonesia orang beli mobil bukan karena butuh ... tapi karena gengsi ..... atau Butuh buat Gengsi .... :-))))))

sanhen

October 12th, 2004, 08:46 AM

Here's the source
From Indofood: http://www.indofood.com/content/index.asp?fuseaction=list_artikel&venue_id=050501&topic_id=1&enter_date=5/6/2003%2011:59:18%20AM

From Far Eastern Economic Review: http://www.feer.com/articles/2003/0312_25/free/p040.html

Dimana2 kayanya sama dhe..
Lagi itu gua pernah ngobrol2 sama sales2 disini
Mereka bilang.. kalo ada orang dateng mao beli barang n naek mercy.. biasanya beli barangnya murah.. ngga spend banyak
Tapi kalo student yg dateng.. or orang laen lah.. biasanya beli barangnya bagus2 n pilih yg mahal
Sebabnya sih.. katanya orang yg mobil nya mahal tuh biasanya lagi pusing bayar cicilan mobilnya hehehehe beli mobil mahal buat gengsi

tata

October 12th, 2004, 04:20 PM

Unfortunately ... di Jakarta .. Audi doesn't work well ....
Kalah ama BMW en Mercy .... ( maksudnya kalah gengsi .......)

You know di INdonesia orang beli mobil bukan karena butuh ... tapi karena gengsi ..... atau Butuh buat Gengsi .... :-))))))

Perhaps Audi didn't see Indonesia as a profitable market until recently. According to the news, recently Audi sells more cars in Indonesia than in other ASEAN countries, this is why they're thinking of operating assembly lines here.

Audi is indeed a good and reliable car. Mercedes thend to have an image of 'old-man' car while Audi represent young, dynamic and sporty.

Alvin

October 13th, 2004, 03:03 AM

THailand spends 70 times more than Indonesia to promote its tourism and attracted 10 million v 4 million tourists in 2003. Imagine what would happen if Indonesia spends just half the amount Thailand spends on tourism promotion...

Lemah, Posisi & Peran RI dalam Kerjasama Pariwisata ASEAN

Laporan -

SANUR, investorindonesia.com

Mereka yang berada dalam ranah pengambilan keputusan pengembangan pariwisata tidak ada kesempatan untuk mengembangkan kepakarannya, akibatnya pengambil keputusan sangat lemah berpengaruh pada posisi dan peran Indonesia dalam kerjasama pariwisata ASEAN.

Menurut Dr Rini Raksadjaja MSA, ketua kelompok penelitian dan pengembangan kepariwisataan ITB, ini terjadi akibat oleh posisi pariwisata dalam pembangunan nasional kurang ditempatkan secara proporsional antara hasil yang dituntut dan peran yang diemban.

Rini mengemukakan hal tersebut, dalam lokakarya "Upaya Peningkatan Industri Pariwisata Indonesia Melalui Implementasi Kerjasama Perjanjian Pariwisata ASEAN", yang diselenggarakan Ditjen Kerjasama ASEAN, Deplu, di Sanur-Denpasar, Selasa.

Ia menjelaskan, kerjasama ASEAN di bidang kepariwisataan pada tingkat tinggi secara resmi ditandai dengan adanya penandatanganan "ASEAN Tourism Agreement" (ATA) pada KTT ASEAN ke-8 di Kamboja, 2002.

Sasaran kerjasama sesuai ATA meliputi bidang dukungan bagi perjalnan intra dan internasional ke ASEAN, dukungan pelayanan transportasi, akses pasar, pariwisata berkualitas, keamanan dan pengamanan pariwisata, pemasaran dan promosi terpadu serta pengembangan SDM.

Pembangunan pariwisata Indonesia melalui kerjasama ASEAN inilah yang menjadi masalah dalam pengembangan pariwisata Indonesia, karena dalam pengembangan pariwisata di Indonesia agaknya kurang mendapat perhatian atau dianggap masalah kecil.

Sementara itu, Putu Agus Antara, ketua Bali Torism Board (BTB), mengemukakan bahwa Indonesia harus segera menerbitkan kebijakan-kebijakan krusial untuk menolong sektor pariwisata.

Salah satunya yang terpenting sekarang ialah kebijakan open gate & open air serta mengenai transportasi udara (airlines).

Kurangnya dukungan kebijakan sektor-sektor lain terhadap pariwisata, merupakan salah satu kelemahan pariwisata Indonesia. Hal ini dapat dimengerti, karena masih minimnya golongan elit pemerintah yang memahami kompleksitas sektor yang membantuk pariwisata.

"Bahwasanya untuk memajukan pariwisata diperlukan pula upaya memajukan sektor-sektor lain, ternyata belum begitu dipahami banyak orang. Akibatnya, urusan pariwisata hanya dianggap sebatas realitas aktivitas industri pelesiran dan kesenangan belaka, seperti hotel, restoran dan objek wisata," ujarnya.

Tentang promosi dan pemasaran pariwisata Indonesia, menurut Antara masih dominan di atas kertas. Padahal negara-negara tetangga di ASEAN meningkatkan promosi untuk meraih angka kunjungan wisman, sedangkan Indonesia masih sangat minim.

Ia mencontohkan dana promosi Thailand mencapai US$ 200 juta, Malaysia US$ 150 juta dan Singapura US$ 60 juta, sementara Indonesia hanya US$ 3 juta.

Dengan segala kelemahan manajemen pariwisata di Tanah Air, pada 2003 Indonesia hanya mampu meraih kunjungan wisman empat juta orang saja, sementara Malaysia meraup 10,58 juta wisman dan Thailand 10 juta wisman serta Singapura 7,5 juta orang.

Lokakarya yang dibuka oleh Wagub Bali, Kusuma Kelakan ini, merupakan upaya sosialisasi pemerintah dalam meningkatkan industri pariwisata melalui kerangka kerjasama pariwisata ASEAN. (ant)

Yamauchi

October 13th, 2004, 04:28 AM

Alvin, my thoughts exactly. I think as economic growth continues the government can get a better hold on its fiscal policy. When that happens, more money can be put into promoting tourism (maybe around 2007). After that, it's just a matter of time before they start raking in money from tourism.

macgyver

October 13th, 2004, 05:27 AM

macgyver

October 13th, 2004, 06:55 AM

macgyver

October 13th, 2004, 06:59 AM

Perhaps Audi didn't see Indonesia as a profitable market until recently. According to the news, recently Audi sells more cars in Indonesia than in other ASEAN countries, this is why they're thinking of operating assembly lines here.

Audi is indeed a good and reliable car. Mercedes thend to have an image of 'old-man' car while Audi represent young, dynamic and sporty.

Audi sees record 2004 sales
Thu 7 October, 2004 13:06

By Sebastian Tong

SINGAPORE (Reuters) - Audi, the luxury arm of German carmaker Volkswagen, forecasts a 2-3 percent rise in 2004 global vehicle sales to a record, and says it will build its first Southeast Asian plant.

A swelling orderbook following the release of new models would push 2004 global sales of Audi vehicles up 2-3 percent, offsetting a 2.3 percent drop in sales in the first 8 months of the year, Audi group marketing head Ralph Weyler said on Thursday.

"We have a good increase in our order situation, and we are sure we will surpass 2003 volumes by 2-3 percent," Audi group marketing head Ralph Weyler told Reuters.

The new models would also boost flagging sales in China, its fourth-largest market after Germany, Britain and the United Staets, he added. He forecast China sales of about 63,000 vehicles in 2004, about the same as last year.

China, where Audi dominates the luxury car segment, accounted for around 8 percent of global sales of 23.4 billion euros in 2003. Its sales there slid 15 percent from January to August after Beijing moved to cool its red-hot economy.

NEW SOUTHEAST ASIA PLANT

Weyler added that Audi planned to set up its first Southeast Asian plant to take advantage of lower regional tariffs due next year.

"The analysis is more and more complete and the decision will be in the next month," he said.

He declined to identify the plant's location but said a possible tie-up between Audi's parent, Volkswagen, and dominant Malaysian carmaker Proton Holdings was "one alternative" among others.

Europe's largest carmaker, Volkswagen, said last week it was in talks with Proton for a partnership that could give VW a foothold in Southeast Asia's fast-growing auto market.

Weyler said Audi Southeast Asian unit sales rose by between 3 and 5 from January to October at the German automaker, which is gearing up for more competition from rivals BMW and DaimlerChrysler.

MALAYSIA IN FOCUS

Global vehicle sales fell 2.3 percent to 498,860 in the first 8 months of 2004, reflecting a rundown on inventory of existing models, he said. But an "aggressive expansion" of its product portfolio has led to a rise in orders, he added.

In mid-September, the carmaker said it has taken in more than 20,000 orders in Europe for its new A3 Sportback, and that orders for new A6 and A8 models were also up from year-earlier levels.

The Sportback competes against BMW's new 1-Series hatchback and Volkswagen's Golf GTI in the premium compact segment.

Audi sold a total 770,000 vehicles last year and Weyler predicted a record this year as the luxury automaker pushes into Southeast Asia, where several carmaking heavyweights have already set up plants and are expanding capacity.

Nissan Motor Co, Japan's second-largest automaker, announced an expansion in plant capacity at a Thai plant in July, a month after Mitsubishi Motors Corp announced its own Thai plant expansion.

U.S. automaker Ford Motor Co said last year it planned to double production of premier vehicles at its Philippine plant, after agreeing to plough $500 million into its Thai operations with joint venture partner Mazda Motor Corp.

Malaysia, the largest automaker among the 10-member Association of South East Asian Nations (ASEAN), is committed to reducing auto tariffs to between zero and 5 percent by next year under the ASEAN Free Trade Agreement.

It has encouraged Proton to find a strategic partner, saying it should not depend on state handouts.

"There are markets here where we cannot be that successful because we do not have production plants and have to face high import taxes. When you do not produce a car locally, you are at a disadvantage from a price point of view," Weyler said.

ASEAN also includes Brunei, Indonesia, Vietnam, Singapore, Laos, Cambodia, the Philippines, Myanmar and Thailand.

http://www.reuters.co.uk/newsPackageArticle.jhtml?type=motoringSummary&storyID=598314&section=news

Alvin

October 13th, 2004, 10:42 AM

well under normal circumstances I think when car manufacturers look at ASEAN to build a new plant, their first instinct would be Thailand or Malaysia. And THEN Indonesia...

David-80

October 13th, 2004, 05:44 PM

Premier Oil drills successful Indonesian well

LONDON, Oct 13 (Reuters) - British oil exploration and production group Premier Oil said on Wednesday it had drilled a successful well in Indonesia, and that results from the well had beaten initial expectations.
"The results of this new well have exceeded pre-drill expectations and Premier estimates that recoverable reserves for the Gajah Baru field have increased to approximately 325 billion cubic feet, equivalent to 54 million barrels of oil equivalent," Premier said in a statement.

Premier shares were up 2.3 percent at 645 pence in early morning trade.

David-80

October 13th, 2004, 05:45 PM

Finally, new oil explored! This is what Indonesia need, with such huge oil reserves and gas, Indonesia needed new investment in this particular area.

cheers

Alvin

October 13th, 2004, 05:48 PM

Indonesia Produsen Minyak Sawit
Terbesar Kedua di Dunia

Banjarmasin – Ketua Umum Gabungan Perusahaan Kelapa Sawit Indonesia (Gapki), Derom Bangun, menyatakan, Indonesia sekarang ini dinyatakan sebagai negara produsen minyak sawit terbesar kedua di dunia, setelah Malaysia. “Tetapi melalui Gapki, kini berusaha menjadikan Indonesia sebagai negara produsen minyak sawit terbesar pertama dunia menggeser Malaysia, kata Derom, di Banjarmasin, Selasa (12/10).
Derom Bangun menyatakan, produksi minyak sawit Indonesia sekarang ini tercatat 10,8 juta ton per tahun, sedangkan Malaysia 13,3 juta ton per tahun. Tetapi dengan luasnya lahan yang berpotensi menjadi lahan pekebunan di Indonesia, maka di masa mendatang bisa dipastikan produksi minyak sawit di negeri ini akan lebih banyak dibandingkan negara lain.
“Sekarang saja jumlah tanaman kelapa sawit di Indonesia tercatat lima juta hektar. Tetapi dengan potensi lahan yang tersedia dan ideal sebagai kebun sawit, dalam waktu lima hingga 10 tahun mendatang bisa menjadi 10 juta hektare,” katanya.
Dengan luas areal tanam kelawa sawit yang mencapai 10 juta hektare, tambahnya, maka produksi minyak sawit Indonesia akan melimpah menjadi dua kali lipat dari sekarang dan akan sulit ditandingi negara lain di dunia, tuturnya didampingi beberapa pengurus Gapki yang lain. Menurutnya, permintaan minyak sawit dunia akan terus membengkak.
Bila tadinya ada kekhawatiran mengonsumsi minyak sawit akan menyebabkan kolesterol, anggapan demikian sudah tidak ada lagi, sehingga permintaan pun terus meningkat.

Negara paling besar yang membeli minyak sawit Indonesia adalah India yang mencapai dua juta ton per tahun, dimana di negara tersebut banyak sekali jenis makanan yang memerlukan bahan minyak sawit.
Sementara itu, kebutuhan Indonesia terhadap minyak sawit terbilang juga cukup besar, tercatat sekitar tiga juta ton per tahun, terutama kebutuhan minyak goreng, pembuatan mentega, sabun, dan lain sebagainya.
Di Indonesia wilayah yang sekarang ini paling besar memiliki perkebunan kelapa sawit adalah Sumatera Utara, baru disusul Propinsi Riau dan beberapa propinsi lainnya. Kalsel sendiri, tambahnya, juga termasuk propinsi yang cukup luas perkebunan kepala sawitnya.
Menurut seorang pengurus Gapki Kalsel, luas perkebunan kelapa sawit di Kalsel tercatat sekarang ini 25 ribu hektar yang dikelola 26 perusahaan. Tetapi luas perkebunan kelapa sawit Kalsel itu bakal berkembang pesat karena lahan yang dikuasai perusahaan perkebunan kelapa sawit dan sudah memiliki sertifikat hak guna usaha tercatat 154 ribu hektare.
Kelapa sawit di Kalsel tersebut sekarang ini baru diproduksi sebagai minyak sawit mentah (CPO) yang kemudian diantar-pulaukan ke Pulau Jawa untuk diproduksi menjadi minyak goreng yang sebagian kembali dipasarkan ke daerah ini.(gun)

Alvin

October 14th, 2004, 02:58 AM

Malaysia is Avanza's next export destination

Indonesia is known as a good market for multipurpose vehicles (MPVs), as more and more carmakers are setting up plants here to cater not only to Indonesian demand but also regional and even global markets.

Japanese carmaker Toyota Motor Company (TMC) has made Indonesia a global base of production for its medium MPV Toyota Avanza, as well as the latest model of the ever-popular Toyota Kijang MPV, the Kijang Innova.

Introduced late last year and with delivery starting in January, some 28,000 Avanzas were sold as of August, with many more people on a waiting list in Indonesia alone.

TMC's subsidiary, PT Toyota Motor Manufacturing Indonesia (TMMIN), announced last Thursday its export activity to Malaysia with an annual capacity of 24,000 units in completely knocked-down (CKD) form.

On May 17, the company began exporting to Thailand with a lower volume of 8,400 units in completely built-up (CBU) form.

"The Toyota Avanza will be assembled by Perodua Auto Corporation Sdn. Bhd, an affiliate company of Daihatsu Motor Co. Ltd., and will be marketed and distributed by UMW Toyota Motor Sdn. Bhd.

"The latest exports to Malaysia further prove TMMIN resolves to intensively penetrate the overseas market as a global production base for MPVs with the combination of domestic success and increasing regional opportunity opened by AFTA," the company said in a release.

It also expects that exports will further contribute to the Indonesian economy, promote the growth and development of the Indonesian automobile industry and expand intra-ASEAN trade.

The Toyota Avanza sold to Malaysia, as well as to Thailand, is powered by a 16-valve, double overhead camshaft (DOHC) 1,300 cc engine equipped with variable timing-intelligence (VVT-i) technology that is in compliance with the Euro 2 emission standard.

It also uses a catalytic converter, which requires unleaded fuel.

The variant is known as the Toyota Avanza 1.3S in the Indonesian market; it also comes with an antilock braking system (ABS) and automatic transmission.

Malaysian and Thai buyers, however, also have the option of the Toyota Avanza with manual transmission. The Avanza sells for RM56,000 and RM60,000 (Rp 140 million and Rp 151 million) in Malaysia, and 579,000 baht and 699,000 baht (Rp 134 million and Rp 161 million) for cars equipped with manual and automatic transmission, respectively. -- Novan Iman Santosa

Alvin

October 14th, 2004, 02:53 PM

New vehicle sales up 17% on month to 45,371 in September

JAKARTA (Dow Jones): New vehicle sales in Indonesia rose 17% to 45,371 units in September from 38,695 in August, automotive company Astra International said Thursday citing data from the national car assemblers' association, Gaikindo.

Domestic new vehicle sales in the first nine-months of the year totaled 348,738 units, up 28% on year, according to Gaikindo.

The association didn't provide an explanation for the rise, but analysts attributed this to relatively low interest rates, which spurred consumers to buy vehicles through bank loans.

Market leader Astra International (ASII.JK) sold 18,324 new vehicles in the local market in September, up 25% from 14,606 in August.

Singapore's Jardine Cycle & Carriage Ltd. (C07.SG) owns 41.9% of Astra. (*)

David-80

October 14th, 2004, 03:34 PM

Thursday October 14, 8:34 PM

The Second-Hottest Car Market In The World

Jakarta teacher Bachtiar Aming sometimes yearns for the dark days of Indonesia's financial crisis in 1998. Back then his commute to work at a small computer college was just 20 minutes on deserted streets. Now that the traffic jams are back, it takes an hour. Indonesia's economy is growing again, and that has triggered record vehicle sales. "There are just too many cars, trucks, motorcycles everywhere," Aming laments. "But if I don't have a car, I won't have a job."
China and India's double-digit growth in car sales has gotten worldwide attention. But Indonesia, the world's fourth-largest country by population, is also one of its hottest car markets. Driving the sales are cheap financing and plenty of new, low-priced models such as the popular Toyota Kijang sport-utility van, assembled locally by Astra International.
This year auto sales will likely grow 32% from 2003, to 465,000 vehicles, estimates Mandiri Securities in Jakarta. That makes Indonesia the third-largest market in Southeast Asia after Malaysia and Thailand and the second-fastest growing after China. It marks a steep recovery from 1998, when demand plunged to just 58,000 vehicles amid the Asian financial crisis. "The rebound has been spectacular," says Cheong Kwok-Wing, a UBS analyst in Singapore.
Indeed, analysts say that if the economy stays on track, auto sales could triple, to 1.3 million vehicles, by 2010. There's plenty of room for growth. Just 1 in 35 Indonesians owns a car, compared with 1 in 14 Thais and 1 in 7 Malaysians. "After China and India, Indonesia is clearly the biggest [sales] opportunity for car manufacturers anywhere in Asia," says Philip Eng, CEO of Singapore's Jardine Cycle & Carriage Ltd., which owns a 42% stake in Astra.
Behind the recent surge in demand is a pickup in consumer spending after a long spell in the doldrums. That has been driven by a sharp increase in lending by banks. Right now car purchasers can get loans on a new model with as little as 5% cash up front. That compares with the 20% down payments common just a few years ago. Competition and cost reductions have also led to lower sticker prices. Entry-level passenger vans such as Suzuki Motor's four-wheel-drive Karimun cost up to $14,000 before the Asian crisis. Updated versions of the same model now go for under $10,000. "It's the affordability that has fueled the car boom," says John Slack, Astra's chief financial officer.
Unlike in China and India, big global auto makers aren't rushing to build manufacturing capacity in high-risk Indonesia. But as long as the economy holds up and the price is right, the country's showrooms will be packed -- no matter how bad the traffic.

Alvin

October 16th, 2004, 08:59 AM

Yogyakarta - our next tourism hub?? + plan to build new international airport

Jumat, 15/10/2004 13:32 WIB
Yogya genjot pengembangan industri wisata
oleh : Suwantin Oemar

Daerah Istimewa Yogyakarta kini bertekad menjadi hub penyebaran wisatawan ke derah-daerah lain di seluruh Indonesia, mengingat potensi yang dimiliki daerah ini cukup menarik.

Selama ini Yogyakarta hanyalah sebagai kota singgah bagi turis asing setelah mereka berkunjung ke Bali dan kota-kota lainnya. Namun, ke depan, pemda setempat berbebah diri dengan mengupayakan daerah ini menjadi kota tujuan, tidak lagi kota singgah bagi turis asing dengan menjadikan bandara Adi Sucipto untuk penerbangan langsung. ke luar negeri.

Untuk mewujudkan keinginan itu, pemda setempat kini melakukan promosi wisata tidak lagi terbatas pada Daerah Istimewa Yogyakarta (DIY), tapi juga melibatkan Jawa Tengah, Jawa Timur, dan provinsi lain.

"Pemda bersama pelaku industri pariwisata di sini akan membuat paket-paket wisata untuk Jogja, Solo, Jatim, bahkan sampai ke Sulawesi. Ini merupakan paket wisata yang sudah disiapkan, sehingga daerah ini akan menjadi hub bagi penyebaran wisata ke daerah lain di seluruh Indonesia," kata Bambang S. Prioyadi, Sekretaris Wilayah Daerah DIY.

Banyak tempat menarik untuk dikunjungi oleh wisatawan di daerah ini mulai dari keindahan alam, sampai kepada seni dan budaya yang beraneka ragam.

"Candi Borobudur akan dikembangkan menjadi objek wisata persembahyangan bagi turis beragama Budha. Paket-paket wisata ini akan ditawarkan oleh pengusaha ke luar negeri seperti ke beberapa negara di Asia yang banyak pemeluk agama Budha," tutur Bambang dalam paparan pengembangan wisata pada acara Royal Tourism Indonesia Mart & Expo (TIME) di Yogyakarta belum lama ini.

DIY merupakan daerah yang relatif sempit. Luasnya hanya sekitar 3.185 km2. Provinsi ini tidak memiliki banyak pilihan dalam pengembangan sektor industri.

Namun, daerah ini dikaruniai oleh keunggulan dalam hal kebudayaan. Bila dirunut kembali, budaya di daerah ini sudah tumbuh dan berkembang sejak sebelum abad ke-7. Hal ini dapat dilihat dari peninggalan sejarah dalam bentuk candi maupun bentuk peninggalan lainnya. Beberapa peninggalan sejarah dalam bentuk candi yang sudah terkenal adalah Borobudur dan Prambanan.

DIY memiliki keunikan dan beberapa pesona alam yang menarik untuk dikunjungi oleh wisatawan baik asing maupun domestik.

Pertama, di daerah ini terdapat gunung berapi yang paling aktif di dunia. Kedua, di daerah ini terdapat sand dune atau bukit pasir yang selalu bergerak.

Menurut Bambang, bukit pasir ini merupakan satu-satunya kejadian alam yang ada di wilayah Asia setelah di gurun pasir di daratan Cina. Ketiga, daerah ini memiliki jaringan sungai di bawah tanah di pegunungan Gunung Kidul. Keempat, daerah ini memiliki pantai yang relatif indah.

Industri pariwisata Yogyakarta mengalami pasang surut, sesuai dengan kondisi perekonomian dan keamanan secara nasional. Jumlah kunjungan turis asing ke daerah ini selama 2003 mencapai 95.629 atau meningkat dibandingkan tahun sebelumnya sebanyak 90.777.

Empat besar

Bila dilihat dari komposisi wisatawan asing yang berkunjung ke Yogyakarta terlihat penyebaran secara merata dari berbagai negara. Empat besar jumlah turis asing adalah Belanda (25%), Jepang (11%), dan Prancis dan Australia masing-masing 7%.

Lambatnya pertumbuhan kedatangan turis asing ke Yogyakarta selama ini, menurut Bambang, antara lain disebabkan karena tidak adanya hubungan langsung ke pasar global. Pintu masuk bagi turis asing ke daerah ini selama ini adalah Jakarta, Surabaya dan Denpasar.

Dengan dibukanya Bandara Adi Sucipto untuk penerbangan langsung ke luar negeri memberi harapan kepada daerah ini terjadinya peningkatan jumlah turis, terutama dari kawasan regional.

Bandara Adi Sucitpo sudah dapat melayani penerbangan langsung ke Kuala Lumpur dan Singapura. Bahkan, pemda setempat sudah melakukan pendekatan dengan beberapa perusahaan penerbangan regional supaya membuka penerbangan langsung ke Yogyakarta.

Daerah ini kini terus melakukan pembenahan infrastruktur bandara dengan melakukan perluasan, sehinga pada tahun 2006 sudah dapat didarati oleh pesawat berbadan lebar jenis Boeing 767.

Untuk jangka panjang, Yogyakarta segera membangun bandar udara bertaraf internasional di daerah Kulon Progo arah barat Bantul mulai tahun 2010 untuk mengantisipasi tingginya arus penerbangan ke kota itu.

Memang belum ada detil rencana pembangunan bandara internasinal itu. Namun, satu hal yang pasti DIY sudah menyiapkan master plan-nya karena bandara yang ada sekarang tidak memungkinkan lagi untuk menampung arus pergerakan penerbangan.

Lokasi Bandara Adi Sucipto sudah masuk dalam kota. dan menimbulkan gangguan kebisingan bagi masyarakat di sekitar, apalagi bila dadarati oleh pesawat jenis berbadan lebar.

Bambang memaparkan bahwa fokus pengembangan produk wisata di DIY meliputi banyak aspek. Pertama, wisata berbasis budaya dan sejarah.

Dalam hal ini pengembangan produk wisata tidak hanya terpaku kepada penikmatan terhadap artefak, namun lebih kepada peningkatan sense wisatawan untuk merasakan apa yang terjadi pada masa artefak tersebut dibangun.

Dalam hal ini heritage digali lebih jauh untuk dapat menonjolkan nilai-nilai yang terkandung didalamnya. Dalam kaitan dengan konsep ini, Malioboro, sebagai contoh, akan lebih dikembangkan tidak hanya semata-mata sebagai tempat belanja.

Namun, ujarnya, lebih kepada pemahaman terhadap nilai-nilai filosofis dan budaya yang terkandung dalam penataan ruang Malioboro tersebut.

Penggalian nilai-nilai budaya dari urban heritage maupun obyek-obyek wisata bidaya lainnya akan menjadi kekuatan utama wisata di Yogyakarta.

Dengan bercampurnya beberapa akar budaya di wilayah ini baik itu Budha, Hindu, maupun Islam, ujarnya, akan membawa kekayaan tersendiri yang akan sangat menarik untuk dieksplorasi oleh wisatawan asing.

Wisatawan akan diajak untuk merasakan nilai-nilai yang terkandung dalam haritage tersebut. Wisata jenis incentives seperti ini, tambahnya, didorong lebih jauh untuk dapat dikembangkan di Yogyakarta.

Salah satu cabang wisata ini, kata Bambang, adalah wisata yang terkait dengan bentuk pilgrimage (bersifat keagamaan). Dengan memanfaatkan beberapa potensi wisata yang terletak pada jarak sampai dengan empat jam dari Yogyakarta, akan dapat dikembangkan wisata berbasis pilgrimage tersebut antara lain Borobudur, Prambanan, Masjid-Masjid Walisongo.

Bahkan, menurut dia, satu investor dari Malaysia, yakni Arab Town Sdn Bhd, sudah menyatakan minatnya untuk membangun kawasan wisata benuansa islami di atas lahan seluas 20-50 ha.

Dia mengemukakan bahwa konsepnya di kawasan itu nantinya akan dibangun fasilitas leisure, kesehatan dan universitas bernuansa Islami, tapi bukan seperti IAIN yang ada sekarang.

Perkampungan Islam

Selain itu, pemda setempat juga menyiapkan pembangunan Pusat Perkampungan Islam (PPI) se-dunia yang melibatkan pengusaha dari Jakarta dan Yogyakarta di atas lahan 250 ha.

Sebanyak 58 negara Islam, katanya, sudah menyatakan sepakat untuk ambil bagian dari proyek Pusat Perkampungan Islam itu. PPI itu nantinya dirancang seperti Taman Mini Indonesia. Di lokasi itu masing-masing negara Islam memiliki bangunan yang bercirikan negara mereka.

Kedua, wisata berbasis ecoturism. Kekayaan alam yang ditemui di Yogyakarta dan sekitarnya mampu mendorong dikembangkannya ecotourism. Beberapa obyek yang dapat dikembangkan dapat bersifat umum maupun yang bersifat wisata minat khusus.

Eksplorasi terhadap keberadaan gunung berapi teraktif didunia, sand dune, dan tanah karst, menurut dia, akan mampu mendorong berkembangnya wisata jenis ini.

Ketiga, meeting, konvensi, dan pameran. Salah satu perkembangan menarik akhir-akhir ini yang didorong lebih lanjut dalam pengembangan pariwisata adalah wisata konferensi dan pertemuan.

Yogyakarta, ujarnya, secara sadar mengembangkan prasarana dan sarana yang akan mampu mendorong keberlangsungan wisata ini. Beberapa fasilitas yang dikembangkan antara lain Jogja Expo Centre (JEC) yang dapat juga berfungsi sebagai tempat pertemuan.

Selain itu, juga mendorong perguruan-perguruan tinggi untuk melaksanakan kegiatan ilmiahnya sehingga mampu mengundang terlaksananya pertemuan maupun seminar baik tingkat nasional maupun internasional.

Untuk pameran, saat ini juga didorong adanya pembukaan jaringan antar produsen dan pengusaha pameran baik di tingkat Asia Tenggara maupun Asia untuk dapat melaksanakan pameran di Yogyakarta.

Keempat, wisata belanja tidak dapat dipungkiri bahwa wisata belanja juga merupakan salah satu kegiatan wisata yang berkembang.

Untuk itu Yogyakarta juga secara sadar mengembangkan bentuk wisata ini. Namun demikian, bentuk wisata belanja di Yogyakarta masih tetap berbasis kepada eksplorasi nilai-nilai budaya. Produk-produk kerajinan akan menjadi salah satu daya tarik utama.

Untuk itu perlu diperhatikan hubungan antara desa-kota dalam mendukung industri yang akan menunjang sektor wisata dalam dua hal, yaitu mengembangkan jalur penyediaan produk kerajinan/souvenir yang dapat disediakan oleh masyarakat pedesaan, dan pengembangan produk wisata di daerah pedesaan.

Kelima, wisata lainnya kegiatan wisata lainnya yang hendak dikembangkan di Yogyakarta adalah wisata kesehatan.

Untuk itu dalam jangka menengah akan dikembangkan fasilitas kesehatan bertaraf internasional. Namun demikian, jenis pelayanan kesehatan yang hendak dikembangkan di Yogyakarta tidak semata hanya pada jenis pelayanan medis secara khusus, namun disini lebih dikembangkan pada pendekatan herbal spa, pelayanan medis secara umum, maupun pelayanan kesehatan alternatif.

Untuk menunjang pengembangan industri pariwisata, pemda setempat akan menyiapkan infrastruktur seperti pembangunan jalan tol khusus wisata yang direncanakan melingkar di sekitar pegunungan.

Dengan adanya jalan tol wisata itu, menurut Bambang, diharapkan akan muncul kawasan wisata baru yang dilengkapi oleh berbagai fasilitas hotel bebintang dan lapangan golf modern.

"Pemda hanya menyiapkan infrastruktur, sedangkan untuk pembangunannya tetap melibatkan investor baik domestik maupun asing," kata Bambang.

Untuk melaksanakan hal tersebut, beberapa langkah yang akan diambil adalah dengan melakukan road show terpadu tourism, trade and invesment dengan sasaran ke wilayah-wilayah dengan radius penerbangan empat jam seperti Taiwan, Korea Selatan, dan lain sebagainya.

Yamauchi

October 18th, 2004, 10:12 AM

Santos says Jeruk Two well flows 7,488 bbl oil per day

JAKARTA (JP): Australian petroleum producer and explorer Santos Ltd. said Monday that the Jeruk Two well offshore East Java flowed 7,488 barrels of oil per day from a drill stem test.

The well also flowed 2.21 million cubic feet of gas per day, Santos said.

"These preliminary results from Jeruk Two are very encouraging and we look forward to the final evaluation of the well," Santos Managing Director John Ellice-Flint said in Sydney as quoted by Dow Jones Newswires.

Santos said the drill stem test was performed last weekend over an 18 meter interval from 5,134 meters to 5,152 meters.

Santos is the operator of the well, located in the Sampang Production Sharing Contract. It has a 50 percent stake in the field, with PT Medco Sampang also holding 50 percent.

Alvin

October 18th, 2004, 11:14 AM

Monday October 18, 12:33 PM
INTERVIEW: HK Texwinca Hldgs Plans To Re-Enter Indonesia
By Ruby Chan

Of DOW JONES NEWSWIRES

ADVERTISEMENT

HONG KONG (Dow Jones)--Five years after pulling its retail franchises out of Indonesia, Texwinca Holdings Ltd. (0321.HK) is once again planning to move into the country, attracted by low operating costs.

The knitted fabrics maker and clothing retailer intends to begin selling casual wear under the Baleno brand in Indonesia in a year, likely through partnerships with local retailers, Texwinca Executive Director Simon Ting said in an interview with Dow Jones Newswires.

"Our franchisees stopped operations there because of disorder and turmoil. We are planning to enter the market again as we see their economy is recovering from the Asian financial crisis," said Ting.

"We expect to make a profit due to the low cost of operation."

The planned move into Indonesia's retail market will come just over a year after Texwinca began selling its Samuel and Kevin brand of casual wear in Thailand.

Texwinca's founder Poon Bun Chak, who emigrated to Hong Kong from China's Guangdong province, started the fabric manufacturing business in 1975, but branched out into retail in 1996 by buying casual-wear brand Baleno.

Retail now accounts for about 40% of Texwinca's revenue. Besides re-entering Indonesia, Texwinca also plans to expand to Vietnam and the Philippines, Ting said.

But China will remain its focus for development, he said. China accounted for 63% of Texwinca's retail sales of HK$2.55 billion for the year ended March 30.

Ting said the company has set aside HK$60 million to open 350 shops in China this fiscal year, split between wholly owned and franchise operations, with 180 already opened in the first half. It has 1,950 shops in China currently.

The company has a range of retail products, from Baleno's casual wear and women's wear Baleno Attitude, to youth-oriented line Samuel and Kevin, I.P. ZONE and ebase. Ting said profit margins are higher in the more specialized operations such as Samuel and Kevin, which has a margin of over 70%, and Baleno Attitude with more than 150%. That compares with Baleno casual wear's profit margin of more than 50%.

"While Baleno's casual wear has a stable profit margin, the higher margin from other brands would lift up the company's overall profit margin," he said.

For the year ended March 30, 2004, Texwinca's net profit fell 29% to HK$422 million, weighed down by cotton price increases which led to a substantial rise in raw material costs. Revenue, however, rose 20% to HK$6.22 billion.

Ting expects cotton prices to continue stabilizing, and projects the company's retail and manufacturing operations will each grow 20% on year for the year ending March 2005.

Ting said order levels for its manufacturing operation are "satisfactory." Texwinca plans to spend between HK$150 million and HK$180 million to expand its fabric manufacturing capacity.

Ting said the company will expand its production capacity aggressively if the removal of import quotas put in place by the U.S. and European Union proves to be positive for textile companies operating in China. The quota elimination will take effect Jan. 1, 2005.

"We believe there will be plenty of business opportunities after the quota removal. China will gain more market share for orders from Latin America and Middle East, but many textile manufacturing companies are cautious of the outcome."

The U.S. accounts for about 60% of Texwinca's manufacturing revenue. Wal-Mart Stores Inc. (WMT), J.C. Penney Co. Inc. (JCP) and NIKE Inc. (NKE) are among Texwinca's clients.

Alvin

October 19th, 2004, 09:04 AM

. Korea's imports of Indonesian coal may rise 67 percent this year

JAKARTA (Bloomberg): South Korea's imports of Indonesian coal may increase 67 percent this year as generators try to meet rising power demand and replace falling Chinese supplies, London- based shipbroker Simpson, Spence & Young said in a report.

Korean power producers may import 13.5 million tons of Indonesian coal this year, up from 8.1 million tons in 2003, the report said. Imports of Australian coal used for electricity generation may rise a quarter this year.

"South Korea has faced shrinking supplies from China at a time of rising import demand," Simpson, Spence said. "Australian and Indonesian steam coal has replaced Chinese exports."

South Korean utilities are looking elsewhere for coal supplies as China has restricted coal exports this year in part because power demand surged as first-half economic growth of 9.7 percent spurred electricity use. The country's coal exports will fall to 86 million metric tons this year, 8 percent less than 2003, China National Coal Group Corp. said yesterday. (*)

Yamauchi

October 19th, 2004, 09:16 AM

Seems like that would drive coal prices up and increase revenue greatly. Might have a noticable impact on national exports.

Yamauchi

October 20th, 2004, 08:12 AM

I have to agree that paying of the IMF would be a good idea now.

Indonesia's Forex Reserves Rise by US$91.9 MLN

JAKARTA, Oct 20 Asia Pulse - The country's foreign exchange reserves rose US$91.9 million in a week to US$34.81 billion on Oct 15, the central bank, Bank Indonesia, said.
The increase was attributed to oil and gas revenues.

The central bank also said in a statement that the amount of primary money in circulation rose Rp965 billion (US$107 million) to Rp177.79 billion because of an increase in giro of commercial banks held by the central bank.

The statement said the position of Bank Indonesia's liquidity credit remain relatively unchanged.

(ANTARA)

sanhen

October 25th, 2004, 11:27 AM

Belanak Natuna FPSO.

1. Will be opened by SBY on Friday from Presidential Palace Merdeka.
2. One of the largest in the world.

The Belanak Natuna FPSO is one of the most complex processing systems to be installed offshore. It is the first offshore liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) facility on a floating vessel in the Asia Pacific region. The new build FPSO will be the central processing facility which will serve as a regional hub for the eastern portion of Block B, including the Belanak fields and potential future developments.

The project team's many achievements include an exemplary safety performance. Over 16 million hours were worked from the start of the project within the Peoples Republic of China, Singapore, Europe and Indonesia, of which about eight million hours were achieved at the PT McDermott yard, achieving a remarkably low lost time incident frequency of 0.025. This is particularly significant with a 4000-strong workforce, at peak, carrying out work in the yard.

The project has been designed and executed to international safety and quality standards with stringent technical audits conducted frequently. Procurement activities were managed from the Singapore project office and equipment and services were supplied from across the globe particularly within Asia, meeting the Indonesian government requirements for local supply content.

PT Brown & Root Indonesia in conjunction with DKES, Inc., was awarded the contract to design, engineer, procure, construct and install the FPSO, moorings and flexible risers. All project management services and engineering have been executed from Indonesia and Singapore. Initial hull design and engineering were performed in Leatherhead, U.K., and topsides engineering and procurement from Singapore.

The subcontract for fabrication of the topsides modules, integration, installation, testing and commissioning was awarded to PT McDermott Indonesia. Fabrication of the topsides began in March 2002. Integration of the 25,000 tonnes process topsides onto the hull commenced in September 2003 and was completed in June 2004. The topsides comprise eight modules, a flare boom and pipe racks.

The FPSO hull was constructed in China by Dalian New Shipbuilding Heavy Industry Co. Ltd (DNS). Construction commenced in March 2002 and was completed in 18 months. The hull has a storage capacity of one million barrels of oil. One of the largest hulls constructed for an FPSO, it measures 285m in length and 58m in width, with a depth of 26m and maximum displacement of 255,000 tonnes. The hull was designed and built to last 30 years without the need for dry-docking and all mechanical equipment is expected to last for this period with routine maintenance offshore. The vessel also has living quarters for 120 personnel.

Currently celebrating its 85th anniversary, Halliburton is one of the world's largest providers of products and services to the petroleum and energy industries. The company serves its customers with a broad range of products and services through its Energy Services and Engineering and Construction Groups. The company's World Wide Web site can be accessed at www.halliburton.com.

http://img66.exs.cx/img66/3221/FPSO20arial20view24.jpg

http://img66.exs.cx/img66/5384/FPSO20arial20view30.jpg

Alvin

October 25th, 2004, 03:16 PM

beautiful! :applause:

David-80

October 25th, 2004, 03:45 PM

Yeah, very beautiful and looks neato ! :cheers:

cheers

David-80

October 25th, 2004, 04:03 PM

Monday October 25, 4:08 PM

Gold Industry in Indonesia's E Java Providing 40,000 Jobs

SURABAYA, Oct 25 Asia Pulse - East Java's gold industry is providing jobs to some 40,000 people, despite the fact the region is not a gold producer, governor Imam Utomo said here.
"As many as 19 gold companies and 1,500 gold handicraftsmen are registered operating in the province. They are employing about 40,000 workers," the governor said when opening the Indonesia Jewellery Fair 2004 here Friday.

The governor expressed optimism about the prospects of a gold industry center to be set up in Surabaya's Jalan Blauran.

He said the provincial administration was also planning to establish a gold industry center on a 50-hectare lot in the Sidoarjo district.

Meanwhile, according to a spokesman for the Indonesia Jewellery Fair 2004's organizing committee, Leo Hadi Loe, the sixth exhibition held on October 22-25 has attracted more sellers and buyers than previous exhibitions.

He said as many as 125 domestic and foreign gold companies were taking part in the exhibition.

"About 30 of the 125 gold companies are from other countries, including Malaysia, Singapore, Hong Kong, Japan and Colombia," he said, adding that Indonesia's gold products were in great demand in Italy, France and some other European countries.

(ANTARA)

David-80

October 25th, 2004, 04:12 PM

Interesting article in Property and Lippo prospect, I should have posted this on Business thread, but heck..:lol:

INTERVIEW:Indonesia Lippo Karawaci Aims Growth Over 5 Yrs

JAKARTA (Dow Jones)--Indonesian property company PT Lippo Karawaci (LPKR.JK) expects to grow further over the next five years after recently restructuring its business.

"Over the next five years, we will be able to generate sustainable revenue from our businesses," said Lippo Karawaci President Director Viven Sitiabudi in an interview with Dow Jones Newswires.

Lippo Karawaci, a unit of conglomerate Lippo Group, has merged seven smaller property companies into the main body of the company. It has also merged three previously separate business lines - property, hospitality and healthcare - into one in an effort to streamline businesses and improve efficiency.

After the business restructuring, Lippo Karawaci has a combined market capitalization of 3.5 trillion rupiah ($385 million) from around IDR750 billion previously. This represents 24% of the total capitalization of the property sector on the Jakarta bourse, or around 0.7% of total market capitalization.

By increasing its market value, Viven expects Lippo Karawaci will return to investors' radar screens.

"Higher market capitalization is one factor that could attract investors," she said.

Lippo Karawaci's share price has more than doubled since it announced the business restructuring in June, and currently trades around IDR1,725.

The restructuring has also resulted in expectations that the company's revenue will grow steadily over the next five years, she added.

This year, the company expects revenue to rise 21% to about IDR1.7 trillion, but that will be offset by the cost of business restructuring, which will likely keep its net profit steady at IDR290 billion for 2004.

The company targets its revenue to rise between 20% and 30% annually over the next five years, with revenue from hospitality and healthcare services likely to continue growing.

Lippo Karawaci runs four hospitals in greater Jakarta and Surabaya in East Java, as well as three hotels in Jakarta and on Sumatra. It hopes to have another hospital in Jakarta next year.

The company has four mall projects under construction, and is eyeing the smaller cities in Indonesia on expectations that consumer purchasing power outside the main urban centers will continue to grow in coming years.
As part of the restructuring, Lippo Karawaci also plans to issue up to 1 billion new shares by the end of the year to raise around IDR1 trillion to help finance its business expansion, which includes plans to build hypermarkets and townships in some of the smaller cities in Java and Sumatra.

Analysts expect Indonesia's property sector to grow by more than 15% annually over the next five years, as the economy looks set to improve following the peaceful outcome to the presidential elections this year.

tata

October 27th, 2004, 02:06 PM

Related news about Belanak facility.
Scroll down and you will see the beatiful picture of it

tata

Belanak facility to up RI's oil output: Purnomo

Dadan Wijaksana, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

Minister of Energy and Mineral Resources Purnomo Yusgiantoro said on Tuesday the nation's yearly crude oil output had declined by an average of 16 percent over the past years but a new production facility would push output back to above 1 million barrels per day (bpd).

As of September 2004, Indonesia's oil production was at 966,465 bpd of crude, below its quota of 1.27 million bpd set by the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC).

With proven reserves running dry, the commissioning of an US$800 million floating production facility in the Belanak field in the South Natuna Sea later this week would help boost the country's oil output, said Purnomo.

He said that at its peak, the Belanak floating production storage and off-loading (FSPO) facility could produce up to 100,000 bpd of crude oil.

"It won't be that large at the beginning but it should reach that peak level in less than a year."

The Belanak project -- to be officially launched by president Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono on Friday -- is the first major project to be inaugurated by the new government.

The Belanak FPSO, which is the size of three soccer fields, is one of the largest floating production facilities in the world.

"It will not only produce crude oil, it will also produce gas, condensate and liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) in significant amounts," Purnomo said, although the natural gas would be used in part to supply Malaysia and Singapore.

The project was funded by U.S. oil giant ConocoPhillips (COP), with the Indonesian government assured of 85 percent of the crude oil output, added Purnomo.

ConocoPhillips at present, has net crude oil production of 15,000 bpd. The company also processes 248 million standard cubic feet per day of gas, or 8 percent of Indonesia's entire natural gas output.

Separately, the Cepu oil and gas block, located on the border areas of Central and East Java, also has potential to boost oil production in the country, Purnomo said.

"But, the current problems surrounding the Cepu block need to be resolved soon. I will leave the discussions to the related parties, but it needs to be resolved quickly, so it does not disrupt production," he said.

American energy firm ExxonMobil took over the operating rights of the block in 1999 from state oil and gas firm Pertamina, and that contract expires in 2010.

In 2001 however, after investing millions of U.S. dollars, it announced the discovery of significant oil and gas reserves in the area. It discovered an estimated 600 million barrels of oil and between 700 billion and 1.25 trillion cubic of feet of gas.

ExxonMobil and Pertamina had signed in July this year an agreement that would pave the way for both firms to set up a joint venture to control the block after 2010. However, the previous government replaced Pertamina's management in August, which led to a controversy as the new president of Pertamina promptly announced that the company would not extend the ExxonMobil contract.

Elsewhere, the commissioning of the Belanak field, according to Purnomo, would send a signal to the market and investors that the country's oil and gas sector remained attractive to invest in.

"Hopefully, this (Belanak project) will attract other investors into the country, some of whom could embark on new explorations nationwide."

Yamauchi

October 28th, 2004, 12:31 PM

A fast increase for one week...

JAKARTA, Oct 28 Asia Pulse - Foreign exchange reserves held by Bank Indonesia totaled US$34.98 billion by Oct. 23 up US$172.2 million in a week, the central bank reported.
The central bank said in a statement, the increase was attributable to oil and gas revenues.

It said the amount of primary money in circulation fell by Rp2.5 trillion (US$277.77 million) to Rp175.3 trillion it described as seasonal.

The government's net claim in Bank Indonesia rose Rp3.98 trillion to Rp205.74 trillion as a result of general fund payment, foreign debt payment , tax revenue and oil and gas revenue.

David-80

November 2nd, 2004, 02:21 PM

More and More good news for Indonesia

Indonesia regains self-sufficiency in rice production

JAKARTA (AFP): Indonesia has regained self-sufficiency in rice production after a decade when rapid population rises and dwindling agriculture required foreign imports to meet demand, officials said on Tuesday.

Mohammad Jafar Hafsah, director general for food crop production, said output of unhusked rice in the world's fourth most populous nation this year exceeded domestic demands for the first time since the mid 1990s.

"The figures show that we have reached self-sufficiency again in rice production," Hafsah told AFP.

Indonesia gained self-sufficiency in 1984 -- a landmark for the country of more than 211 million people where sporadic famine remains a problem -- but lost it again a decade later.

Hafsah said production of unhusked rice is this year estimated to reach 54.3 million tonnes, 2.52 percent above the targeted 53 million tonnes.

He said that the production, equivalent to 34 tonnes of husked rice, was above demand for this year of 31 million tonnes. It also represented a some 4.2 percent rise over last year's national output.

Hafsah told AFP that the rise in production was mainly due to expansion and optimization of rice planting areas.

New ricefields were also created as farmers switched from other crops, while marsh rice cultivation and planting in tidal areas helped boost output.

In recent months, Indonesia had imposed a ban on rice imports on the expectation of good harvests, a move which upset aid agencies trying to alleviate hunger with food donations to impoverished areas of the vast country. (***)

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

David-80

November 2nd, 2004, 02:23 PM

Indonesia awards 12 new oil, gas blocks for exploration

JAKARTA (AP): Indonesia on Tuesday awarded local and foreign companies 12 new oil and gas blocks for exploration, and said it would offer 10 more blocks for bidding in December to boost the country's dwindling oil production.

Indonesia, the only Asian member of the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC), is having difficulty meeting its quotas due to declining reserves. The country only has proven crude reserves to last another 10 years.

The companies are expected to invest a total US$163 million during the first three years of exploration, said Novian Thaib, exploration director at the Ministry of Energy and Mineral Resources.

Companies awarded blocks included Petronas Carigali, a unit of Malaysia's Petronas; Andarko Petroleum Corp. from the United States; and Portugal's Altar Sociedade de Investimentol Mobiliario.

The blocks are located in offshore and onshore fields around the country.

Thaib said that the 10 blocks open for bid next month include one offshore block in the Natuna Sea, one onshore block in South Sumatra province and three blocks off the coast of the northwest coast of Sulawesi island. (***)

Alvin

November 5th, 2004, 02:34 AM

VW considering iNDONESIA to be its next manufacturing base in ASEAN

VW pertimbangkan RI jadi basis produksi

JAKARTA (Bisnis) : Volkswagen AG (VW) sedang mempertimbangkan Indonesia sebagai salah satu negara basis produksi menyusul rencana ekspansi ke pasar wilayah Asean, ujar satu eksekutifnya.
Wenda Wonoseputro, Presdir PT Car and Cars Indonesia, Agen Tunggal Pemegang Merek (ATPM) VW di Indonesia, mengatakan pabrikan otomotif terbesar di Eropa saat ini sedang mempersiapkan investasi sebagai bagian dari langkah ekspansi ke pasar Asean.

"Tidak hanya di Malaysia. VW juga ingin mencari basis produksi di beberapa negara sebagai bagian dari strategi ekspansi, dan Indonesia dijadikan salah satu negara yang terpenting," ujarnya kepada Bisnis, baru-baru ini.

Selain dari sisi potensi pasar otomotif yang besar, menurut dia, keberadaan VW memiliki sejarah yang cukup panjang di Indonesia karena sudah pernah melakukan perakitan di sini.

Berdasarkan data Gaikindo, penjualan mobil pada 2003 sebanyak 354.000 unit dan tahun ini diperkirakan bakal meningkat sekitar 18,64% menjadi 420.000 unit.

Gaikindo memproyeksikan penjualan mobil pada 2005 mencapai 480.000 - 500.000 unit, menyusul terus membaiknya penjualan otomotif sampai pertengahan tahun ini.

Pada September lalu, penjualan mobil merek VW di pasar domestik tercatat sebanyak 10 unit sehingga selama sembilan bulan pertama 2004 menjadi sebanyak 54 unit.

Beberapa jenis kendaraan yang dipasarkan a.l. sedan Beetle dan Passat, VW Carravelle, New Polo, Golf dan SUV Toureg. "Saat ini kami baru memiliki satu outlet di Jakarta, akhir tahun kami berencana ekspansi dengan menambah satu outlet di Bandung."

Wenda menambahkan, angka penjualan dan keberadaan jaringan pemasaran yang masih terbatas menjadi salah satu pertimbangan rencana perakitan bagi VW di Indonesia.

Selain itu, menurut dia, faktor keamanan dan ketersediaan infrastruktur perakitan menjadi pertimbangan lainnya.

"Malaysia paling siap, karena mereka menawarkan jaringan penjualan Proton untuk bisa digunakan sebagai dealer VW. Selain itu juga fasilitas perakitan," tandasnya.

Di Indonesia

Produsen otomotif terbesar Malaysia Proton Holdings Bhd. (Proton) kemarin menyatakan persetujuan yang diteken dengan Volkswagen AG minggu lalu akan menjadi dasar Audi AG melakukan produksi di pabrik Proton, demikian harian Edge Financial Daily seperti dikutip Bloomberg.

Head of alliance and partner relations Proton Heribert Keppler mengatakan kedua perusahaan - Proton dan VW bersama-sama telah mengembangkan gagasan perakitan mobil Audi di pabrik Proton di Tanjung Malim (Malaysia), atau Cikarang, Jabar (Indonesia).

Proton menyatakan aliansi dengan VW akan mempercepat upaya pengembangan model baru sekaligus akan membantu perusahaan otomotif Malaysia tersebut meningkatkan pangsa pasar domestik dan penjualan global.

Sebelumnya, Proton menyatakan akan memproduksi dua model kendaraan VW di Malaysia pada 2005 menyusul kesepakatan kerja sama strategis jangka panjang kedua perusahaan otomotif itu.

"Dalam kerja sama tersebut VW akan mendorong pembagian teknologi (technology sharing)," demikian pernyataan pabrikan mobil terbesar Malaysia kepada otoritas bursa beberapa waktu lalu.

WV yang berbasis di Wolfsburg menyatakan kolaborasi antar kedua peruasahaan tersebut merupakan kerja sama independen tanpa rencana VW menguasai saham Proton.

"Sebagai langkah awal, VW dan Proton sepakat menyiapkan perakitan dua model kendaraan merek VW di Malaysia," demikian butir kesepakatan yang diteken petinggi kedua perusahaan otomotif itu di Wolfsburg.

Kedua model mobil tersebut akan diluncurkan di pasar Malaysia pada akhir 2005 dengan target awal penjualan sebanyak 15.000 unit pada 2006.

VW akan mampu meningkatkan pangsa pasarnya di Asean di mana sejumlah pabrikan Jepang seperti Toyota Motor Co. sejauh ini masih mendominasi pasar di kawasan tersebut. (mfm)

Alvin

November 5th, 2004, 07:03 AM

Volkswagen mulls production base in Indonesia

www.chinaview.cn 2004-11-05 13:31:38

JAKARTA, Nov. 5 (Xinhuanet) -- German auto giant Volkswagen AG (VW)is planning to make Indonesia one of its global production bases and to catch up its market expansion plans in southeast Asian region, an executive has said.

Wenda Wonoseputra, president director of Volkswagen's Indonesian distributor PT. Car and Cars, said the German automotive firm is preparing investment as part of its expansion plan in Southeast Asian market.

"Not only Malaysia, several other countries are considered as VW's production base and Indonesia is given a top priority," Wendawas quoted Friday by Bisnis Indonesia newspaper as saying.

Volkswagen's existence in Indonesia has been quite a long time and the company has already assembled its cars in the country, Wenda added.

VW sold only 10 units in September, bringing the total sale volume to 54 units in the first nine months of 2004.

VW Beetle sedan, Passalt, VW Carravelle, New Polo, Golf, and SUV type of Toureg are some of the types Volkswagen offers here. Enditem

David-80

November 5th, 2004, 02:18 PM

Indonesia Starts Exporting Peugeot Cars to Thailand

JAKARTA, Nov 5 Asia Pulse - PT Astra France Motor (AFM), the assembler of French Peugeot cars in the country, has started exporting Peugeot 206 A/T series to Thailand .
The first export of 24 units was made on Wednesday to be followed with regular export of 24 or 48 units every month to that country, AFM President Wiwiek D. Santoso said .

Wiwiek said AFM also hopes to export its product to other Asean countries even Asia Pacific countries including Japan.

Buyers in Japan could have faster delivery from Indonesia than from France, which has to deal with global market, she said.

(ANTARA)

Alvin

November 11th, 2004, 05:18 AM

Oil, gas firms to increase investment next year
The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

Two oil and gas firms plan to make new investments next year in what seems to be a positive development in the country's oil and gas sector, which has seen output declining due to a lack of investment.

PT Caltex Pacific Indonesia (CPI), the local unit of U.S.-based oil and gas giant ChevronTexaco Corp., said on Wednesday it planned to spend as much as US$300 million next year to develop new oil fields in the country.

CPI president director Wahyudin Yudiana Ardiwinata was quoted by Bloomberg as saying that most of the money would go to develop the Rokan and Siak onshore blocks in Riau province and to increase light oil output from the Bekasap field.

It has also submitted a proposal to state oil and gas firm PT Pertamina to team up in developing the latter firm's oil fields in South Sumatra and East Java.

CPI is the top oil producer in Indonesia, which operates in four areas around Sumatra island under production-sharing contracts with oil and gas upstream regulator BP Migas. The company produces about 510,000 barrels of crude oil per day, lower than 770,000 per day in 1998.

Meanwhile, Bloomberg also reported that Santos Ltd., Australia's largest natural gas producer, planned to double spending in this country to about $100 million next year as it starts developing two projects.

The news agency quoted the president of Santos' local unit, Chris Newton as saying that the company would start developing the Maleo gas field and Oyong oil and gas project off East Java next year.

Santos announced in August that it had delayed the startup of the Maleo project to 2006 from 2005. The company owns 75 percent of the Madura concession area, where Maleo is located, while Canada's Talisman Energy Inc. owns the remainder.

The company's plan to develop the $130 million Oyong project was approved by the Indonesian government, Cue Energy Resources Ltd., a partner in the project, said in September.

Oyong will start producing gas in the first quarter of 2006 and may start pumping oil earlier than that to take advantage of high crude-oil prices. Santos owns 45 percent of the project, Singapore Petroleum Co. owns 40 percent and Cue 15 percent.

Indonesia has seen its oil declining by an average of 5 percent a year over the last five years, according to Bloomberg.

The fall has been blamed on aging oil fields and a lack of new investment as investors have worried about various uncertainties including unfavorable government regulations, security threats and labor conflicts.

According to data from the Ministry of Energy and Mineral Resources, Indonesia's crude oil output declined by 0.5 percent in October to about 962,000 barrels per day (bpd) from 966,465 bpd in the previous month.

Indonesia's production of condensate, a light oil produced in association with natural gas, rose to 127,000 bpd from 118,445 bpd in September.

The lower oil output as made Indonesia, with the second lowest output among members of the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC), a net oil importer since the beginning of the year, thus causing the country to miss out the current oil price bonanza.

Some observers have suggested that the government must make a decision to quit OPEC because of the declining output.

Former Pertamina president Baihaki Hakim was quoted in the press earlier as saying that as long as the country could not attract new investment to boost its oil output, its status as an OPEC member, which also means paying annual membership fees, was no longer worthwhile.

Alvin

November 11th, 2004, 05:19 AM

Kijang Innova to be exported to Mideast
JAKARTA: The latest model of the ever-popular Toyota Kijang Innova multipurpose vehicle (MPV) is ready to be exported to seven Middle East countries sometime next year.

PT Toyota Motor Manufacturing Indonesia (TMMIN) vice-president Johnny Darmawan said the company was preparing a special specification for the export.

"Quality issues are critical to buyers in these countries," he said.

Johnny, who is also president of PT Toyota-Astra Motor (TAM), was speaking during a breaking of the fast gathering recently.

TMMIN spokesman Irwan Priyantoko told The Jakarta Post the cars would be modified for the Middle East's harsh and dusty climate.

"We need higher quality of rubber for seals as it is hotter there," Irwan said.

The car also had to be equipped with better filters to handle the dust problem, he said.

This month the company is also set to export the Innova to Thailand, where it has previously exported the smaller Toyota Avanza MPV. The Avanza is also sent to Malaysia.

The exports were in line with Toyota's strategy to make Indonesia its global center for MPVs, Johnny said. -- JP

David-80

November 11th, 2004, 08:20 AM

Indonesia Astra Agro Jan-Oct Crude Palm Oil Output +27.6%

JAKARTA (Dow Jones)--Indonesia's PT Astra Agro Lestari (AALI.JK) said its crude palm oil output rose 27.6% in the ten months to October compared with the same period last year, boosted by higher yields from fresh fruit bunches.

CPO output stood at 642,415 metric tons in the January to October period this year, compared with 503,394 tons in the same period last year. Higher-quality CPO, also known as super CPO, accounted for 58%, or 376,541 tons, of the total output in the latest 10-month period.

The volume of harvested fresh fruit bunches in the first ten months rose 28% from the same period last year to 2.6 million tons.

"Production yields have improved by 29.4% during the period to 14.1 tons per hectare from 10.9 tons per hectare in the same period last year," the company said.

It is targeting to produce 750,000 tons of CPO this year, which would mark a rise of 18% on year. In 2005, it plans to produce 850,000 tons of CPO.

Meanwhile, according a report from Oil World, a Hamburg-based industry publication that focuses on edible oils, global CPO output in 2005 will grow only 4% to 31.2 million tons. The report projects global CPO output in 2004 will stand at 29.8 million tons, which would be 6% higher from last year.

CPO output from Malaysia and Indonesia accounts for 45% and 39%, respectively, of global CPO production.

Alvin

November 12th, 2004, 03:54 AM

Ekspor mobil melonjak 68,46%

JAKARTA (Bisnis): Ekspor mobil Indonesia pada Oktober lalu melonjak 68,46% dibandingkan bulan sebelumnya menjadi 6.241 unit, terdorong oleh realisasi pengiriman Toyota Avanza dalam bentuk CKD ke Malaysia.
Data PT Astra International, Tbk mengungkapkan ekspor mobil Indonesia-mencakup merek Toyota, Honda, Mercedes Benz, dan Mitsubishi selama Januari-Oktober mencapai 34.892 unit.

Ekspor terbesar dibukukan oleh Toyota sebanyak 33.348 unit, Honda 1.197 unit, Mercedes Benz 336 unit, Mitsubishi 6 unit, dan Daihatsu hanya 5 unit.

Chief Corporate Planning PT Toyota Motor Manufacturing of Indonesia (TMMIN) Irwan Priantoko mengatakan ekspor Toyota pada bulan lalu meningkat hingga 70,78% dibandingkan bulan sebelumnya karena a.l. ada realisasi ekspor 2.000 unit Avanza completely knocked-down (CKD) ke Malaysia.

"Sebelumnya, Toyota secara periodik juga sudah merealisasikan ekspor Avanza completely built-up (CBU) rata-rata 700 unit per bulan ke Thailand," katanya kepada Bisnis, kemarin.

TMMI, katanya, juga mengekspor komponen body part dan mesin beberapa model kendaraan seperti Kijang, sedan Corolla, dan Camry ke sejumlah negara terutama Thailand.

Biasanya, menurut dia, volume ekspor komponen tersebut diperhitungkan berdasarkan nilai ekuivalen tertentu yang setara dengan nilai unit mobil yang diekspor.

"Misalnya, satu unit komponen itu ekuivalen dengan 40% mobil yang diekspor. Jadi, angka ekspor 6.241 unit itu sebagian di antaranya dalam bentuk komponen terpisah," katanya.

Irwan mengungkapkan ekspor mobil dalam bentuk CKD maupun CBU mobil Toyota dari Indonesia saat ini baru model Avanza yang diproduksi di pabrik Astra Daihatsu Motor (ADM).

"Ini belum termasuk Kijang Innova, yang baru akan akan diekspor pada akhir November mendatang," katanya.

Sebelumnya, Presiden Direktur PT Toyota Astra Motor (TAM) Johny Darmawan mengatakan akan mengekspor Kijang Innova ke 10 negara Timur Tengah dalam rangka ekspansi pasar otomotif di luar negeri.

Dia menuturkan untuk dapat mengekspor Kijang Inova ke Timur Tengah TAM terlebih dulu harus melakukan penyesuaian terhadap spesifikasi teknis untuk kawasan gurun pasir itu. "Proyek ini tidak gampang karena orang Timur Tengah sangat mementingkan kualitas," tandasnya.

Johny menyatakan langkah mengekspor Kijang Innova ini berkaitan dengan strategi Toyota Motor Corporation (TMC) yang menetapkan Indonesia sebagai basis produksi mobil tersebut untuk kawasan Asean. "Jika tidak ada halangan, bulan ini kami akan mulai kirim ke Thailand," tuturnya. (mfm)

Yamauchi

November 12th, 2004, 05:56 AM

Libya interested in buying CN-235 aircraft from PTDI
Yuli Tri Suwarni, The Jakarta Post, Bandung

The Libyan government has expressed interest in purchasing CN-235 aircraft from PT Dirgantara Indonesia (PTDI) to replace old Russian aircraft currently used by its army.

Son of Libyan President Muammar Qaddafi, Seif al-Islam al-Qaddafi, visited the company's workshop in Bandung on Thursday and made inquiries about the technology used in the CN-235.

Sales director Iwan Sumekto, who accompanied Qaddafi, said that Libya has been using Antonov An-26 aircraft for more than 20 years.

"They need to be replaced," said Sumekto. The 30- to 50-seater CN-235 is suitable for Libya, which is not a vast country, he explained further. The aircraft is required to monitor its territorial and coastal areas.

At the end of the tour, Qaddafi invited PTDI to show its products in Tripoli. "In December or January (next year) we will go to Libya," said Sumekto.

Business development director Budi Wuraskito said that PTDI officials met President Qaddafi during former president Megawati Soekarnoputri's visit to Libya in September last year.

"At first they inquired about Super Puma helicopters," said Wuraskito.

PTDI, formerly known as PT Industri Pesawat Terbang Nusantara (IPTN), was an ambitious project of former president Soeharto. Under then-minister of research and technology B.J. Habibie, the company set a target to produce commercial aircraft by 2015.

The company made headlines mid-last year, when its management suspended 9,670 workers, citing financial constraints as the company had been facing difficulties in selling its aircraft.

With the government's approval, 6,600 employees were dismissed last December. The government disbursed US$50 million in severance packages for the workers, who rejected them and demanded to be reinstated.

PTDI delivered earlier this year military passenger planes, CN-235-220, to Pakistan as part of an agreement, which was made two years ago to purchase four planes worth US$52 million.

PTDI is currently also contracted to supply aircraft components to British Aerospace and Boeing.

The Islamic Development Bank (IDB) has made a preliminary commitment to provide working capital for the projects with a bond issue ranging between $15 million to $60 million.

The bank is currently conducting a feasibility study, which is expected to be finished in February next year, to see whether or not PTDI was bankable.

Alvin

November 12th, 2004, 05:33 PM

Japanese car maker Daihatsu to speed up production in Indonesia

www.chinaview.cn 2004-11-10 13:49:10

JAKARTA, Nov. 10 (Xinhuanet) -- Japanese auto-maker Daihatsu plansto speed up its production in Indonesia to 11,000 units per month in an effort to maintain its position as the country's fourth largest car supplier.

Daihatsu's local unit PT Astra Daihatsu Motor (ADM) will enhance efficiency and accelerate assembly process to meet the target, Bisnis Indonesia newspaper reported Wednesday.

"At present, the factory output reaches one car in every 2.3 minutes or approximately 10,000 units per month. We are preparing to boost productivity by producing one car in every two minutes," ADM Vice Director Noertjahjo Darmadji was quoted as saying.

"We have no plan to launch a new model at this time. The ADM concentrates on meeting the existing demands and increasing productivity," he said.

The company will allocate up to 25 billion rupiah (around 2.8 million US dollars) in fresh fund to procure new equipment for theassembly plant, he added.

In the first nine months of this year, Daihatsu recorded sales of 34,350 units in Indonesia. Enditem

Alvin

November 13th, 2004, 02:12 AM

Holiday gives a boost to Bali's tourism sector
Leony Aurora and Wahyoe Boediwardhana, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta/Denpasar

With Friday the last work day before the Idul Fitri holiday on Sunday, many Indonesians are heading to Bali for the following week-long break.

Deputy chairwoman of the Indonesian Tourism Society Meity Robot said that hotels and flights to the island, a favorite destination for domestic tourists, were almost fully booked.

"The tourists will stay between Nov. 14 and Nov. 21," said Meity on Friday.

Grand Hyatt Bali Hotel public relations officer Renata Hutasoit said that all 653 rooms in the hotel were fully booked from Nov. 14 to Nov. 21.

"However, some guests are still having problems with flights from Jakarta," she said.

A high occupancy rate is also expected at the Bali International Resort in Jimbaran. Spokeswoman Keke Hidayat said that the five-star hotel is fully booked from Nov. 13 until Nov. 18. But the occupancy rate on the following day may be about 80 percent.

In recent years the central government has imposed an extended holiday policy by rearranging public holidays to enable as many long weekends as possible. The government intends to increase higher domestic consumption, which has been the main drive of the country's economic growth for the last several years.

The measure was also deemed necessary to promote tourism, which took severe blows with the Bali bombing in 2002, the Marriott blast in the capital in 2003, and Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS).

The most recent bombing incident in Kuningan, Central Jakarta, on Sept. 9, however, has proved to have little effect on the tourist industry.

"It affected hotels only in Jakarta for about two weeks," said Yanti Sukamdani Hardjoprakoso, chairwoman of the Indonesian Hotel and Restaurant Association (PHRI).

She said that the occupancy rate in Bali reached between 50 percent and 60 percent in the low season and about 70 percent in high season. "The condition in Bali is improving."

Latest data from the province's tourism agency shows that almost 1.1 million foreign visitors have come to the island in the first nine months of this year. The figure is a 52.45 percent increase from last year's figure of about 717,000 tourists.

Although bouncing back, the situation in Bali is far from its glorious days before the bomb tragedy, especially after the implementation of a US$25 visa-on-arrival policy for a 30-day stay in February.

The visa policy restricts visa-free entry to tourists from 21 countries, down from the previous list of 60 countries.

A survey conducted of 10,000 foreign tourists in Bali in 2004 showed that more than 50 percent would not return to the island due to the new policy. The majority also said that the procedure was time consuming.

For Indonesia in general, and Bali in particular, tourism has become a major foreign exchange earner and economic backbone.

The government has targeted foreign exchange revenue of $5.2 billion this year, mostly expected from foreign tourist arrivals, up from the $4.5 billion booked in the previous year.

The 2004 target was based on the assumption that 5.1 million foreign travelers would visit the country throughout the year. Until September, some 3.41 million foreign visitors have passed through 13 entry gates in Indonesia, up 28 percent of the same period last year.

"More foreigners will come in December for their school holidays," said Meity.

David-80

November 14th, 2004, 09:08 AM

macgyver

November 14th, 2004, 04:27 PM

Yamauchi, I read in the news about Libya to sell their jet fighters for Indonesia, each cost 11 million, any idea what fighter jet is it? They said, its now in the US for refurbishment and upgrade. Indonesia seek to buy 9 of them.

cheers

David , Indonesia TNI Commander denies that information

http://jkt1.detiknews.com/indexfr.php?url=http://jkt1.detiknews.com/index.php/detik.read/tahun/2004/bulan/11/tgl/14/time/154640/idnews/241095/idkanal/10

David-80

November 14th, 2004, 04:41 PM

Arghhh crap, Thanks Mac, I am hoping for Mirage or TU-22 at least :bash:

cheers

Fir3blaze

November 15th, 2004, 03:44 AM

Hey guys,
The report says that the 8 aircraft were sold to Libya in 1972 but were never delivered due to the arms embargo. This suggested that they are US manufactured aircrafts, so i don't think it's mirage or tupolev. The sale, however, might be in place, because for Libya it's like a "garage sale" to get rid of old equipments they never even get to use anyway.

Are you guys curious on what would be the aircrafts in question? :) :)

I got the following from an internet article on arms trade restriction placed on Libya.

United States restrictions on military sales date from the mid1970s when the delivery of eight C-130 Lockheed cargo planes ordered in 1972 was blocked out of fear that they would be used for military ventures in Uganda.

I believe that those are what Indonesia seeks to buy. the number of aircrafts matched (eight), and the planes were ordered in 1972 (matched with info from detik.com). If so, then it is not fighter jets, but transport planes (i'm not sure from which variant tho) :cheers:

Yamauchi

November 15th, 2004, 04:39 AM

I'm glad it was a rumor. The TNIAU should focus on standarnization of equipment. The mid-term (through 2015) goal in my mind, if the US embargo is lifted, is to re-open talks on the 60 F-16A sale, continue acquisition of Su-27SKs to two wing (24 aircraft) strength, and two wings of Su-30MKs. Then, they could retire all Hawks and Mks and have a world class air force.

Fir3blaze

November 15th, 2004, 04:57 AM

Hee...this thread is straying towards "indonesian defence review".

Btw, the detik.com article posted by mac says something like : there is still no plans yet (to buy aircrafts). And if there is, we'll discuss it with the ministry of defence.

So, it may not be just rumour after all... :) I dont know, i think adding the C-130 fleet is good idea since Indonesian Air Force need more transport planes and current C-130s are falling apart due to lack of sparepart, however these have been sitting under the hot sun for over 30 years! i dunno whether they'll fall apart soon. :eek2:

One thing i can't understand is why the reports are saying "combat aircrafts". Hmmm...maybe its a different aircraft after all?

JAG2

November 15th, 2004, 04:18 PM

IMO Indonesia should not only buy American built F16A( better buy F16D ) but purchase SU27 SU30 instead. Indonesia should also modernise their entire Naval Fleet.
A country like India has a modern and state of the art Army , Navy and Airforce.
India has if I m not mistaken a Carrier with Super Etendard planes.
As a Archipelago Indonesia should have a big airforce and Navy. :laugh:

Yamauchi

November 15th, 2004, 06:00 PM

I agree. The problem with Su-27s and Su-30s is that China and India are finding that the mandatory overhaul time for their Sukhoi engines is 150 hours. To compare, F-16s only need to be overhauled about every 1,300 hours. Not to mention that Indonesia is paying far too much for their fighters, the up-front cost of these aircraft from Russia and the cost of keeping them in operational service for 10 years will make them as expensive as the American F/A-22 Raptor ($110 million each). This is why Sukhois can't become the backbone of Indonesia's air force, and they will learn this in the next two years when they start crashing from undermaintenance. Rather, they are meant for quick and extremely effective combat.

F-16Ds are much superior to F-16As, but the reality is that the United States has over 150 F-16As sitting in storage at the Boneyard in Arizona. Some of the Indonesian criticisms I've heard of the F-16A are complete nonsense, such as it is only a daytime fighter. Taiwan has turned their fleet into a very advanced force.

JAG2

November 16th, 2004, 03:11 AM

It s a pity that a country like Indonesia with a tremendous wealth of natural resources , can t afford warplanes like the F22 Raptor , main battle tanks Abrahm or the German built Leopard 2 tanks.
F22 Raptor is a far more state of the art warplanes.

David-80

November 16th, 2004, 10:36 AM

I agree with what Yamauchi said, but the problem now, will The US sells their 60 F-16s (are those OCU 15?). AFAIK, when Indonesia bought 12 F-16s from the US, the engine is doing pretty well but the body is not that aerodynamics due of some excessive weight. So its like driving Toyota Kijang with BMW engine. I dont know if this is really true though.

Cheers

David-80

November 16th, 2004, 10:38 AM

Fir3blaze

November 16th, 2004, 04:49 PM

Hee...Indonesia's 9 remaining F-16s are Block 15 OCU, so i think its good if we can procure some more. Anyway, I think even these need upgrading (or replacement). Other countries are already using F-16C/D. At least, we should go for avionics upgrade and then procure some Beyond-Visual-Range (BVR) missiles.

Oh...on raptors, USA will never sell any to Indonesia, even if we are willing to pay twice the price. I dunno about JSF, but i believe to even just get into the programme is hard enough. Of course first you'll have to "make friends" with uncle sam.

PS: can we make a separate thread so we dont mix "defence issues" with industry? :)

David-80

November 16th, 2004, 10:58 PM

Go ahead mate. Sorry Alvin to mess your thread, lets all back in the topic.

Anyway minor correction, Indonesia still have 10 F-16s, the other 2 were down during the training.

Cheers

Yamauchi

November 16th, 2004, 11:17 PM

Yes, I'm really sorry the thread got off-topic. Fun discussion, though.

Fir3blaze

November 17th, 2004, 04:42 AM

Hi all,
I've created a separate thread for "defence and military issues"
We can continue this discussion there.

JAG2

November 17th, 2004, 10:14 AM

:okay: Yeah , that would be great , cause I like talk abt defense issue , how abt you guys ??
IMO I like to see that Indonesia can and will compete with other Asian neigbours , not that a modern armed forces necessarily means that Indonesia is a threat or has hostile means towards his neighbours.

Alvin

November 17th, 2004, 03:55 PM

no need to apologise , guyz :)
WELL, heres an article about Indonesia's textile industry

Indonesia : Though diversified, textile industry facing crises due to obsolete technology 17th November 2004

Even though Indonesia's manufacturing base is highly diversified, small-scale and cottage industries, mainly producing consumer goods for the domestic market, employ the bulk of the industrial labour force.

In the recent years, a growing medium and large-scale component emerged, which, by the time that Indonesia became engulfed in economic crisis in late 1997, accounted for most of the sector's gross output and value added (91% in 1996). The medium- and large-scale segments of the manufacturing sector are now largely private-sector concerns.

Since 1965, the manufacturing sector grew at annual rates well in excess of the rate of overall GDP growth. Its share of constant-price GDP rose from 8.3% in 1965 to 20.8% in 1991, when it surpassed that of the agricultural sector (19.6%) for the first time. By 2003 manufacturing accounted for 28.3% of GDP. The decline of oil and gas export revenue during the early and mid-1980s forced the government to promote alternative exports in general and manufactured exports in particular. As a result of several policy packages, between 1983 and 1999 the value of manufactured exports increased in absolute terms from US$3.2bn to US$32.2bn, and in relative terms from 15.2% to 77.7% of total exports.

The manufacturing sector, which accounted for 25% of GDP in 1997, suffered in the wake of the 1997-98 financial crisis. The situation had not improved much by 2002, in which year a total of 138,088 people in the manufacturing sector lost their jobs. The decline was primarily owing to labour disputes, rising production costs, security problems, illegal charges, legal uncertainty and the smuggling of cheap imports.

Competition from neighbouring countries was an additional factor depressing sentiment in the sector. The traditional, more labour-intensive, industries are suffering most. In 2002, 242 companies in the textiles, garments and leather went bankrupt, as did 215 companies in the food, beverage and tobacco industry. At end-2002 the Central Bureau of Statistics estimated that there were 19,696 manufacturing firms in Indonesia.

In the meantime, Indonesia developed a range of heavy industries including iron and steel, production of fertilisers until the mid1980s, and a litlle later, the petrochemical industry which began producing a large variety of products, including benzene, methanol, formic acid, paraxylene, polyethylene, polypropylene, polystyrene and purified terephthalic acid.

Next, came the turn of textiles in early 1980’s, which initially got developed as a heavily protected producer of import substitutes and once the domestic demands were met, the industry embarked on a major export drive.

From negligible levels in 1980 to a value of US$7.1bn of exports in 2003, the industry became the second-largest earner of foreign exchange after petroleum and the largest single employer in the manufacturing sector. Though facing the economic crisis at home, the sector proved relatively immune and continued its success run till the late 1990s.

But for the past couple of years, the industry has lost its sheen, losing out to Vietnam, Cambodia and other low-cost producers. Though it imports raw cotton, the ready availability of oil and natural gas means that it can make nylon, polyester and polyamide using local raw materials.

Here too, the industry depends on imported technology and heavy machinery. Technology here too, is turning obsolete, and output obtained is of poor quality coupled with productivity low. The inability of companies to invest since the 1997 crisis is one of the reasons for the low-technology state of about 50% of the textile industry.

David-80

November 17th, 2004, 05:52 PM

Good reading, this is the picture of Indonesian textile industry, losing out market and manufacturing industry to Vietnam and China.

2005 is the year when US will scrap the Quota system for its textile imports, we"ll see what happen with the future of Indonesian textile in the coming months not years. I am counting and hopefully the industry can survive. Amen!

Cheers

Yamauchi

November 18th, 2004, 07:55 PM

Three countries eye PTDI aircraft
Rendi A. Witular, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

Financial difficulties and labor problems now confronting state-owned aircraft company PT Dirgantara Indonesia (PTDI) does not seem to have dampened the interest of some potential customers in the firm's products.

PTDI president director Edwin Soedarmo said three countries -- the United Arab Emirates (UAE), Bangladesh and Malaysia -- have voiced interest in buying three CN-235 aircraft each. Each aircraft is worth some US$15 million.

"We are still negotiating with the governments of these three countries. The deal will depend on our performance in delivering the CN-235 ordered by Pakistan and Malaysia on time," said Edwin.

The firm is currently making two aircraft for Pakistan and another two for Malaysia. The orders from Pakistan and Malaysia are worth about $22 million and $32 million respectively.

PTDI paid a penalty of $300,000 in January this year for a three-month delay in delivering a military passenger plane to Pakistan due to the company's financial problems and disputes with its workers.

"Delivery performance is one of the requirements set by buyers for us to get orders. We expect to receive more orders once we manage to meet delivery deadlines. We hope there will be no further disruption to our production," said Edwin.

Libya is the other government which recently voiced interest in buying the CN-235. The interest was voiced last week during the visit of Seif al-Islam al-Qaddafi, the son of Libyan President Muammar Qaddafi, to the company's workshop in Bandung.

Edwin also said the company was building five aircraft ordered by the Indonesian Navy and three others for its Air Force. The aircraft ordered by the Navy should be delivered by the end of this year or early next year, while the Air Force wants to receive its aircraft in mid-2006. The order for the Navy and Air Force is worth about $50 million and $69 million respectively.

Apart from aircraft, the company has also planned to produce a simulator for the CN-235 and other planes, as well as manufacturing components for other aircraft producers.

Edwin said the Malaysian government and its air force had expressed interest in the simulator, which is priced around $12 million.

The company has also received orders from Boeing and British Aerospace. However, due to the lack of working capital, PTDI has not yet agreed to accept these orders.

PTDI was set up by the government of former president Soeharto in the 1970s as part of an ambitious project of the then influential research and technology minister, B.J. Habibie, to develop a hi-tech aircraft industry in the country, despite strong opposition from many economists at that time.

The company, however, has experienced difficulties in selling its aircraft, forcing the government to use taxpayers money to keep it afloat.

However, following the financial crisis of the late 1990s, the cash-strapped government could no longer support the ailing aircraft manufacturer, and in 2003 the company's management proposed laying off thousands of its employees as part of a restructuring program to keep the company from going bankrupt.

David-80

November 19th, 2004, 09:20 AM

CN-235MPA is pretty good for coast guard and maritime patrol.

Cheers

Fir3blaze

November 19th, 2004, 02:30 PM

Yeah, i agree Dave, especially when compared to having nothing at all. The purchase by TNI-AL is a good move.

Anyway, what's the status of PT DI now? I mean, the last time i heard about em is when they decided to lay off thousands of workers, then there were big protests. If i'm not wrong the board was also revamped. But after that it went quiet.

David-80

November 19th, 2004, 03:58 PM

Even US coast guard is purchasing CN-235MPA from EDSA.

The status is alive with so many debts...I am hoping they can survive though, they have one of the best aircraft manufacture facility in the world, its a pitty if we lose them. They are the 1st company in Asia that created commercial turboprop aircraft with fly-by-wire technology, N250.

Cheers

Alvin

November 19th, 2004, 05:06 PM

David-80

November 19th, 2004, 05:22 PM

Alvin

November 19th, 2004, 05:33 PM

Yeah Alvin, one thing for sure, we dont have to wait Jakarta tower until 2009 and all the projects that were delayed or cancelled are now built! :D

ps: wow dude, your post is passing 1000! congrats alvin! :D

Cheers
haha , I didn't realise it until you pointed it out!! I was , all this time, waiting for that moment that my post # breaks 1000... :)

Fir3blaze

November 19th, 2004, 06:09 PM

The status is alive with so many debts...I am hoping they can survive though, they have one of the best aircraft manufacture facility in the world, its a pitty if we lose them. They are the 1st company in Asia that created commercial turboprop aircraft with fly-by-wire technology, N250.

Well, its good to know that PT DI is alive. By the way, i think the N250 is the first turboprop with fly-by-wire not only in Asia, but the world.

Fir3blaze

November 19th, 2004, 06:13 PM

**Taken from jawapos.co.id**

BALAI KOTA - Gubernur DKI Jakarta Sutiyoso rencananya akan membuka Sidang Pleno ke-4 Asian Network of Major Cities 21 (AMNC 21) di Hotel Borobudur, Minggu mendatang. Target utama dalam pertemuan tersebut adalah tercapainya kesepakatan untuk membuat pesawat penumpang bermesin jet yang dibuat PT Dirgantara Indonesia.

Dalam keterangan pers yang diterima koran ini, Kepala Biro Humas dan Protokol Pemprov DKI Jakarta Catur Laswanto mengatakan, Jakarta ditetapkan menjadi tuan rumah penyelenggara the 4th Plenary Meeting of AMNC 21 melalui keputusan sidang pelno ke-3 AMNC bulan November 2003 di Hanoi, Vietnam.

"Even ini akan berlangsung mulai 21 hingga 24 November 2004 yang diikuti para wali kota dan gubernur kota-kota besar di Asia. Mereka tergabung dalam Asian Network of Major Cities seperti Bangkok, Beijing, Delhi, Hanoi, Kuala Lumpur, Manila, Singapura, Seoul, Taipeh, Tokyo, Yangon, dan Jakarta," katanya.

ANMC 21 adalah sebuah jaringan internasional yang terdiri dari kota-kota besar di Asia untuk bersama-sama menanggulangi berbagai masalah pembangunan, terutama yang berkaitan dengan teknologi baru, manajemen lingkungan, dan pembangunan industri.

Kerja sama ANMC 21 meliputi 17 bidang, antara lain pembuatan pesawat jet ukuran sedang, pengembangan jaringan parawisata, budaya, dan kesenian Asia. Selain itu ada kerja sama di bidang pengendalian emisi kendaraan bermotor, pengembangan penanggulangan AIDS, peningkatan partisipasi wanita dalam pembangunan, pengembangan jaringan kerja sama krisis manajemen, dan peningkatan proyek investasi dan usaha.

"Pertemuan ini menjadi bukti buat dunia internasional bahwa kota Jakarta aman, terkendali, dan kondusif, termasuk bagi penyelenggaraan even internasional," tuturnya.

Dalam rangka menyemarakkan penyelenggaraan AMNC 21, Pemprov DKI Jakarta menggelar berbagai kegiatan dan pertemuan, seperti Business and Invesment Forum, Jakarta Agro Forestry Expo, dan Flora and Fauna Exhibition. Gubernur Sutiyoso juga berjanji akan membawa rombongan peserta ANMC 21 berkunjung ke PT Dirgantara Indonesia. Hal itu dilakukan untuk meyakinkan para peserta bahwa PT DI siap melaksanakan proyek pembuatan pesawat jet itu.(fol)

--------------------------------------------------------------------------

Hmm...sounds like the N2130 is crawling up from its grave.

http://www.angkasa-online.com/10/02/english/ende.jpg

David-80

November 19th, 2004, 06:17 PM

N2130 is the plane i want to see in asian skies! but its really tough with the current financial situation and heavy competition from Boeing, Airbus and Embraer.

Cheers

Alvin

November 20th, 2004, 02:36 AM

Bali favorite island in Asia: Magazine
The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

Bali's panoramic views and unique mixture of spiritualism and tourism has made it the favorite island for travellers in the Asia-Indian Ocean region, according to readers of Conde Nast Traveler magazine.

The international award was received by Bali Tourism Agency head I Gede Nurjaya last week in London at the World Travel Mart 2004, Antara news agency reported.

"Even though Bali has received numerous awards, many things still need to be perfected to make it a high-quality tourist destination," Nurjaya said.

The island beat out other attractive destinations such as Phuket in Thailand and the Maldives in the Indian Ocean. Borneo and Bali's next-door neighbor Lombok also made it into the top 10 destination list; in eighth and 10th position respectively.

Conde Nast Traveler surveyed 241,000 subscribers to determine the winner of this year's award. Other awards were also presented to favorite cities, hotels, resorts, and modes of transport.

The award indicates that travelers still prefer Bali over other islands, despite the bombing in 2002 and repeated travel warnings issued by the United States and other countries.

Previously, Bali received a similar award from the Time Magazine in 2003, which surveyed 60,000 readers around the globe.

The island has seen a surge of foreign tourists this year. In the first 10 months some 1.22 million foreigners came to Bali, already a significant increase on last year, when less than a million foreigners came.

Alvin

November 24th, 2004, 09:45 AM

ChevronTexaco to build US$128 million power plant in Indonesia

SINGAPORE (Bloomberg): ChevronTexaco Corp., the second-largest U.S. oil company, said it will build a $128 million geothermal power generating unit in West Java, Indonesia to help reduce future electricity shortages in Java, Madura and Bali.

ChevronTexaco will have a 95 percent stake in the 110 megawatt plant, and Darajat Geothermal Indonesia 5 percent, ChevronTexaco said in a faxed statement. The so-called Darajat III venture will expand current output of 145 megawatts from ChevronTexaco's Darajat I and II facility.

A power sales contract has been signed with the state utility Perusahaan Listrik Negara and state oil company PT Pertamina, ChevronTexaco said. The Darajat plants use steam supplied by Pertamina, which has a contract from the government to develop geothermal resources in the area.

The project will seek credits under the United Nation's Clean Development Mechanism for contributing to lower carbon dioxide emissions. The credits would be tradable, enhancing the venture's profitability, the statement said.

A group including PT Thiess Contractors Indonesia and Kanematsu Corp. was awarded the contract to build the new plant by the third quarter of 2006. (**)

David-80

November 26th, 2004, 01:41 PM

Toyota's Indonesian unit starts car exports

JAKARTA, Nov 26 (Reuters) - An Indonesian unit of the world's second-biggest car maker, Toyota , has started exports of a popular model to Thailand and Brunei, the company said on Friday.
The car is part of a project by Toyota that aims to build vehicles for regions other than Japan and North America by drawing on Toyota's global resources.

PT Toyota Motor Manufacturing Indonesia said in a statement it targeted exports of 10,000 units of Kijang Innova per year, which would include 7,000 units to Thailand.

Toyota said it has drawn orders of 46,000 for the new Kijang model, launched in September, in Indonesia, outstripping production so far.

It plans to start exports to Malaysia and the Philippines next year and the Middle East in 2006.

Indonesia's leading auto retailer, PT Astra International Tbk , through its unit PT Toyota Astra Motor, is the sole distributor of Toyota cars in the world's fourth most populous country

David-80

November 26th, 2004, 01:43 PM

Indonesia's Shrimp Exports Jump 75 PCT in Jan-Aug

JAKARTA, Nov 26 Asia Pulse - Indonesia's shrimp exports surged 75 per cent to 26,679 tons in the first eight months of this year from 15,253 tons in the same period last year.
The exports in the eight month period even exceeded the country's exports of 21,209 tons in the whole of 2003, the association of shrimp feed producers said.

The sharp increase has caused suspicion in the United States that the country has imported shrimp from China and Thailand to re-exported, association leader Johannes Kitono said.

The United States has imposed anti dumping import duty on shrimp from a number of major shrimp producing countries, including China and Thailand.

The United States has warned Indonesia against re-exporting shrimp from the two countries, Kitono said.

(ANTARA)

Alvin

November 27th, 2004, 01:23 AM

Kijang Innova makes export debut to Thailand, Brunei
Zakki P. Hakim, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

Less than three months after the Kijang Innova minivan was launched domestically, PT Toyota Motor Manufacturing Indonesia (TMMIN) has sent the first batch of exports to Thailand and Brunei.

TMMIN president director Sachio Yamazaki said on Friday some 7,000 completely built up (CBU) units of the multipurpose vehicle would be shipped to Thailand and another 600 CBU units to Brunei.

TMMIN is the manufacturing unit of the country's largest automotive group, PT Astra International.

"We are committed to contributing to the economic development of Indonesia. It is as part of that commitment that we start today to export the Kijang Innova," he said during a ceremony to mark the first exports.

He said the company planned to export 10,000 CBU units of the Innova annually to Southeast Asia, Oceania and the Middle East.

The company intends to manufacture 80,000 Innovas each year, he said. In addition, the company will also export some 130,000 units of fuel engines every year starting in 2005 to Southeast Asian and South American countries, as well as to India and South Africa.

Thai consumers will be able to choose from gasoline or diesel engine Innovas, both with automatic transmission. Both types of engines meet Euro3 emission standard requirements.

The diesel engine Innovas exported to Brunei will come in three varieties: two manual transmission versions and one automatic transmission.

Akira Okabe, the managing director of Toyota Motor Corporation, said the Kijang Innova was very important to Toyota as it was the first model the Japanese automaker had manufactured entirely and exclusively outside of Japan.

"Today is a historic event ... a new chapter in the history of Toyota and of the world automobile industry," he said.

He said Toyota's confidence in Indonesia had led Japan's largest automaker to select the country as its global production base for minivans.

Innova is the new generation of the Toyota Kijang minivan, which for years has been the top selling car in Indonesia.

The Kijang was an immediate success when it was first introduced here in 1977.

The Kijang was the first four-wheeled vehicle in the country to reach the one million production mark. That mark was achieved in October last year.

Toyota had invested some US$360 million to develop the Innova in Indonesia, providing 4,500 new jobs.

The new Kijang Innova sold about 3,000 units in September and about 7,000 in October.

Minister of Industry Andung A. Nitimihardja, who attended the ceremony on Friday, said he hoped Toyota would continue to assist the country's small and medium enterprises in developing automotive components, and increase the number of local suppliers for Toyota.

Innova is manufactured with 74 percent local content, proving that Indonesian-made components have the quality to compete in the global market, the minister said.

"In the future, we are looking forward to seeing Toyota bring other companies in the Toyota group to invest in the country, especially the makers of components that Indonesia is still unable to manufacture," he said.

Alvin

November 29th, 2004, 10:07 AM

Yamaha To Build 2nd Motorcycle Factory In Indonesia

JAKARTA, Nov 29 Asia in Focus - YAMAHA MOTOR CO. LTD (YMC) plans to invest US$66.85 million in a second motorcycle factory in Indonesia. The new production unit will allow the company to increase motorcycle production to 1.8 million units next year, with 600,000 being produced at the new factory.

* The new production unit will be part of YMC's mid term three year plan to start in January next year, according to YMC senior managing director Kajikawa.

* This year YMC targets to sell 880,000 units of Yamaha motorcycles, the second largest in market share in Indonesia after Honda.

Yamauchi

November 30th, 2004, 06:47 AM

Indonesia's Pertamina Hikes Fuel Gas Price To US$0.17 A Litre

JAKARTA, Nov 30 Asia in Focus - Indonesia's state oil and gas company, PERTAMINA, raised the price of fuel gas Monday Rp850 to Rp1,550 (US$0.17) per liter, more than double its original price of Rp700 per liter. The new price came into effect at midnight on November 29.

* The selling price of fuel gas will continue to rise until it is equal to its economic price, said acting manager of Pertamina's government and institution relations, Adiatma Sardjito.

* The price hike is also meant to cover the company's loss of Rp25 billion a year in sales, he said.

SUMMARY

Indonesia's Pertamina more than doubles fuel gas price overnight to US$0.17 a litre

Alvin

December 1st, 2004, 02:23 AM

ASEAN-China free trade a likely disaster, say trade unions

Ridwan Max Sijabat, The Jakarta Post/Jakarta

Labor unions here called the historic trade pact between China and the 10 Southeast Asian countries a disaster on Tuesday, claiming that Indonesia would not be able to compete with Chinese products.

Dita Indah Sari, chairperson of the Indonesian Workers National Struggle Front (FNBI), said that if Chinese products were allowed to flood the Indonesian market, almost all small and medium enterprises (SMEs) here would be faced with collapse, thus resulting in hundreds of thousands of people losing their jobs.

She said Indonesia could not compete with China because it produced the same goods as Indonesia, but with better quality but at lower prices.

"We will lose out in free market competition because we're still using outdated technology that is not environmentally friendly, and that fact that we cannot overhaul our high-cost economy and our human resources are less productive," she said.

Open unemployment in the country has reached 9.6 million, while disguised unemployment stands at more than 40 million.

The historic agreement, which was signed during the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) summit in Vientiane on Monday, aims at paving the way for the world's biggest free-trade zone by 2010, containing nearly two billion people. It requires the liberalization of tariff and non-tariff barriers on tradable goods, and the establishment of a mechanism to resolve trade disputes.

ASEAN plans to start free trade negotiations with Japan and South Korea next year, while Australia and New Zealand, attending an ASEAN summit for the first time, hope to soon announce the start of their own talks on a free trade deal.

The 10 leaders of ASEAN also agreed on a six-year program to fast-track trade liberalization and regional integration to create a powerful ASEAN community by 2020, or earlier.

ASEAN members also signed a separate agreement to liberalize tariffs in 11 key sectors, including the automotive, textile and electronics sectors, by 2007 for the six more developed members of ASEAN and 2012 for the other four.

Idin Rosyidin, secretary-general of the Indonesian Welfare Labor Union Confederation (KSBSI), shared Dita's view and said Indonesia would be flooded by Chinese products. He said Indonesia could not compete with China and the more developed ASEAN nations as almost 70 percent of the around 100 million members of the workforce here were elementary and high school graduates, or school dropouts.

"Many timber and garment companies have collapsed over the last three years because of the elimination of quotas in these two sectors, and our garment and textile products are no longer able to compete with products from China and India," Idin said.

Meanwhile, the All-Indonesian Workers Union Confederation (KSPSI) greeted the ASEAN single market and the ASEAN-China trade agreement cautiously, saying that trade liberalization could be a good opportunity for Indonesia to increase its products' share of the regional market. However, he said that trade liberalization needed to be implemented gradually and selectively.

"Indonesia should not bow to pressure from other countries in the region, including giants China and India. Rather, it should be quite selective in determining which products will be allowed to enter the local market," he said.

He said free trade was unavoidable in the global economy and it would be a major challenge for Indonesia to improve the quality of its human resources. However, he also said that it would provide a good opportunity for Indonesia to make use of its competitive advantages.

Alvin

December 1st, 2004, 09:39 AM

Indonesia Offers Energy, Infrastructure Sectors To S.Korea

VIENTINE, Dec 1 Asia Pulse - Indonesia has invited South Korea to build infrastructures in Indonesia and to cooperate in the field of energy, either by investment or energy purchases.

"First of all we hope that Sout Korea will take part in the development of the energy sector, both upstream and downstream," Economic Affairs Coordinating Minister Aburizal Bakrie said here on Tuesday referring to the result of talks between President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono and his South Korean counterpart Roh Moo-Hyun. ADVERTISEMENT

In the upsteam sector, Indonesia government hoped South Korea would take part in development activities, like what had been done by Codeco.

"Now we are still engaged in a contract on the sale of crude oil to that country. But we also hope that the contract could be extended, and the value raised," he said.

At present, Indonesia's oil exports to South Korea reached four million tons a year.

In the downsteam sector, Indonesia also wished South Korea would take part in the building of power plants, for instance. Indonesia also hoped South Korea would increase its energy imports from Indonesia.

Besides energy, the two heads of state also discussed matters relating to information technology, telecommunications, manufacture and infrastructure.

Aburizal said that South Korea was well established in information technology. "In the telecommuncations sector, we also hope for a transfer of technology to Indonesia.

In the manufacturing sector, Indonesia also called on businesses in that country to increase their investment and to engage in developing the manufacturing sector.

(ANTARA)

Yamauchi

December 2nd, 2004, 12:39 AM

PGN sees revenues tripling in 2007

The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

State-owned gas utility company, PT Perusahaan Gas Negara (PGN), on Wednesday projected that revenue from operations to rise three fold in 2007 after completion of its massive pipeline project in 2006, the company's top executive said.

PGN president director WMP Simandjuntak said the company was optimistic for a significant rise in revenues after it completed the construction of a US$1 billion pipeline project. The project will link gas-rich regions in Sumatra with industrial areas in Greater Jakarta, Banten and West Java.

"With the completion of the project, we expect our gas distribution from South Sumatra will reach 950 MMSCFD (million standard cubic feet per day) in 2007 from the current 334 MMSCFD," said Simandjuntak at a public briefing of reporters and investors on Wednesday.

The construction of the project is expected to be completed in mid 2006. Many industrial enterprises in West Java and Banten, the nation's main industrial regions, are expected to switch from oil to gas.

PGN has inked a deal with ConocoPhillips and state-owned oil and gas producer PT Pertamina to supply some 3.3 trillion cubic feet of gas worth Rp 52 trillion (US$5.77 billion) from Sumatra to buyers in Java for a period of 17 years.

Simandjuntak said that around half of the gas volume had buyers, with the remainder expected to be purchased by some 300 industrial plants currently on a waiting list.

PGN is estimated to reap between $200 million and $500 million per annum from the deal, starting in 2007.

PGN also expects to generate higher sales from industrial areas in East Java starting next year, after it signed an agreement with Santos to supply 100 MMSCFD of gas valued at $654 million, and an agreement with Lapindo Brantas to supply 30-50 MMSCFD.

PGN's revenue from gas sales and distribution is estimated to rise to Rp 4.3 trillion this year from Rp 3.6 trillion last year.

However, net profit in the first nine months of this year fell 49 percent to Rp 263.9 billion, from Rp 522.2 billion in the same period last year. The fall was due to foreign exchange losses and interest rate burdens on the company's debts.

Elsewhere, Simandjuntak said the company planned to construct an integrated distribution pipeline that would link the entire island of Java, from Bekasi in West Java to Gresik in East Java, with an investment of $538 million.

The project is scheduled to start in 2008 and be completed by 2010. Gas supply will be derived from regions in Sumatra and Kalimantan.

PGN shares ended higher by Rp 25 to Rp 1,425 on the Jakarta Stock Exchange on Wednesday.

Alvin

December 2nd, 2004, 05:18 PM

Malaysia's Petronas ready to open fuel stations next year

JAKARTA (Antara): Malaysian state-owned oil and gas company Petronas is ready to market fuel here starting next year, with a total investment of US$30 million, a company official said on Thursday.

"We are ready to market our Primas RON 97 fuel on Java and plan to build five to 10 fuel stations and a storage facility," said Petronas Niaga Indonesia president director Fariz Mustafa.

"But we have yet to decide on the locations to build these facilities."

The presence of foreign oil companies in the retail sector is part of Indonesia's plan to liberalize the sector, and scrap state company Pertamina from its monopolies.

Aside from Petronas, other companies include Shell, Elnusa and Sigma Rancang Persada, which will sell high octane fuels.

Faris said the company was preparing another investment of $100 million for upstream and downstream activities. (***)

David-80

December 2nd, 2004, 06:01 PM

Hopefully, that will also ends the Telecommunication Monopoly by Telkom.

Cheers

Alvin

December 3rd, 2004, 05:45 PM

Trade minister urges Indonesia to take advantage of ASEAN-China FTA

www.chinaview.cn 2004-12-03 14:03:49

JAKARTA, Dec. 3 (Xinhuanet) -- Indonesia must take advantage of the Free Trade Agreement (FTA) between China and the 10-member Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) and develop specialization and expertise in production, the trade minister hassaid.

"We can and must take full advantage of the increasing tendencyof East Asia to become a regional production center where China isthe core," Trade Minister Mari Elka Pangestu said in an interview with The Jakarta Post newspaper published Friday.

"China becomes the center due to its big exports and big domestic market. Indonesia, however, could become an alternative supply source or become a complement to China," she said.

She underlined that the spirit of ASEAN Economic Community and the ASEAN-China Free Trade Area is participation of all countries in the region in the production network.

"Eventually, all countries will move towards developing specializations or expertise in producing certain goods," she said.

Mari said Indonesia has potential in electronics, noting that electronics export growth is the highest among the country's non-oil and gas exports. Electronics, she said, "is our future industry."

Mari said Indonesia can specialize most of its natural-based goods. For example, she said, the country's textiles are very competitive, especially synthetic yarns and fabrics, but lack of new investment in the past few years has hampered the sector's productivity.

"In the textile and clothing industry we must no longer play inthe low end products, as China already maintains a stranglehold inthat segment. We have to enter medium end market, which means thatwe must be more concerned about designs and brands, which will deliver higher added value," she said. Enditem

David-80

December 4th, 2004, 08:56 AM

Heh, No surprise, My xbox parts are made in Indonesia. I bought it in Melbourne.

cheers

Alvin

December 7th, 2004, 05:11 AM

ChevronTexaco seeks license to import, sell fuels in RI

JAKARTA (Bloomberg): ChevronTexaco Corp., the second- largest U.S. oil company, has asked the Indonesian government for a license to import and sell fuels as the Southeast Asian country opens up its fuel retailing industry to competition.

"ChevronTexaco, through its unit, is applying for a license to import and sell all kinds of oil products," Erie Soedarmo, director of processing and trading at the Energy and Mineral Resources Ministry, said in Jakarta yesterday.

Indonesia is opening the industry to competition after ending state-owned PT Pertamina's monopoly on fuel sales. The company's role in fuel distribution will be handed over to market regulator BPHilir Migas, which oversees the sale of refined oil products in the country, in November 2005.

Royal Dutch/Shell Group, Malaysia state oil company Petroliam Nasional Bhd, or Petronas, and BP Plc., are international oil companies that have secured licenses to import and sell fuel in Indonesia. BP will focus on selling aviation fuel and fuel oil, while Shell and

Petronas intend to sell high- octane gasoline, Erie said during an interview.

PetroChina Co. and Total SA are also seeking licenses

Alvin

December 7th, 2004, 10:48 AM

December 7, 12:00 PM
OUTLOOK 05:Indonesia Govt Lacks Clear Plan For Ag Sector
By Fitri Wulandari
Of DOW JONES NEWSWIRES

JAKARTA (Dow Jones)--Indonesia's new administration has promised sweeping changes in the country's agriculture sector, but the government is yet to spell out clearly how it would turn that into action, raising concerns that eventually the change of government could mean little to sector.

The Ministry of Agriculture has said it will focus on improving food security, developing agro businesses and improving farmers' welfare with an aim to increase revenue from agriculture and agro-based industries to $12 billion in 2009 from an estimated $7.8 billion in 2004.

"Output of agricultural produce and processed products are expected to increase, boosted by value-addition," said Agriculture Minister Anton Apriyantono.

But industry players say the government is yet to lay out a clear policy for the sector that can absorb 40% of Indonesia's 102.8-million-strong work force in 2004. Without drastic changes, the sector will continue to face the same problems that limited productivity and expansion under the previous administrations, they said.

"We need more action, not just political statements," said Kris Hadisubroto, chairman of Indonesian Association of Oleo-Chemical Producers or Apolin, an edible oil industry lobby group.

Underscoring the problems faced by the industry, agriculture's share in the country's total gross domestic product shrank to 15% in 2003 from 15.6% in 2000, according to the Central Statistic Agency, or BPS. The sector grew just 3.23% on year in the first nine months of 2004, compared with an overall GDP growth of 4.89% during the same period.

Altering policies that block the growth of the agriculture sector should be high on the government's agenda, said Zulhefi Sikumbang, chairman of Indonesian Cocoa Association or Askindo. He cited the case of a 10% value-added tax imposed on agriculture commodities sold to the domestic processing industry as an example.

"Agriculture will go nowhere unless the government eliminate this unfavorable tax policy," Zulhefi said. The cocoa processing industry has been the hardest hit by the tax, he said.

The tax has discouraged the growth of the domestic agro processing industry because it increases the cost of raw materials, in turn forcing growers to export most of their produce in raw form, without any domestic value addition.

Plantation Sector Remains the Backbone Of Agriculture

Indonesia's Agriculture sector has the scope to develop as a significant player in the economy with the plantation sector as a major source of growth, because of the strong demand for plantation crops, said Bustanul Arifin, an economist with Jakarta-based Institute for Development of Economics and Finance or Indef.

"The plantation sector (mainly palm oil and rubber) will be the backbone of agriculture in 2005 and beyond," he said.

The government has already set out a plan to increase plantation output by 5% every year in the next five years, but again, there are no details on how this will be achieved.

Exports of agriculture products in the first nine months of 2004 rose to $1.96 billion from $1.86 billion in the same period of 2003. The government expects exports of agriculture products to reach $9 billion by 2009.

In what could be an indirect benefit to the sector, however, the change of government in Jakarta has raised hopes that the economy would do better in 2005, which in turn could ensure exchange rate stability, crucial to the growth of the plantation sector.

"Steady exchange rates ... will revive private sector (investments), including in the agro industry," said Derom Bangun, the chairman of Indonesian Palm Oil Producers Association or Gapki.

A weak currency as had been seen in recent years, may bode well for commodity exporters but would also raise raw material costs, sometimes more than negating the benefits of increased exports, he noted.

Averaging IDR8,985 against the dollar in November, the rupiah has weakened 7% since last year.

Low Productivity Seen The Biggest Problem

Despite a steady growth in area in recent years, the Indonesian plantation sector continues to face serious productivity issues because of the existence of a large number of small farmers who own uneconomical plots of land.

"You can't ask them to replant or (increase the size of their land holding) to boost production," as many of them are poor farmers, said Suharto Honggokusumo, executive director of the Indonesian Rubber Association or Gapkindo.

According to Rachim Kartabrata, executive secretary of Indonesian Coffee Exporters Association or AEKI, there has been little assistance from the government to help farmers manage the plantations.

"The farmers need more training and financing to improve their farming techniques and they hardly get it," said Rachim.

That, has resulted in stagnant, if not declining, output.

Indonesia's coffee bean output in 2005 is likely to be unchanged from the 360,000 tons produced in 2003-04, while cocoa bean output may fall to 375,000 tons from an earlier projection of 385,000 tons in 2004, according to latest estimates.

Oil palm and rubber could be the only exceptions where output could see a rise in 2005.

Gapki has projected Indonesia's CPO output around 11.6 million tons to 11.8 million tons of in 2005, up from a projected 10.8 million tons in 2004.

Similarly, the International Rubber Study Group or IRSG estimates Indonesia's rubber output to reach 2.16 million tons in 2005, a 9% increase from a projected 1.98 million tons in 2004.

Yamauchi

December 11th, 2004, 08:19 AM

Indonesia Astra Nov auto sales soar 89 pct on year

JAKARTA, Dec 11 (Reuters) - Indonesia's biggest automotive retailer, PT Astra International Tbk , sold 88.5 percent more vehicles in November than a year earlier, thanks to cheaper models and low interest rates, the company said on Saturday.

Astra, which is 47-percent owned by Singapore's Jardine Cycle & Carriage Ltd , said it sold 21,204 vehicles, from 11,247 units in November 2003.

Sales rose as the company's unit, PT Toyota Astra Motor, had started exporting a popular, cheaper model, the Kijang, to Thailand and Brunei in November.

"Toyota started Kijang exports last month," company spokesman, Yulian Warman, told Reuters by telephone.

Astra, through its unit PT Toyota Astra Motor, is the sole distributor in Indonesia for Toyota , the world's second-biggest car maker.

November sales were down from the year's peak of 30,234 in October, as the world's largest Muslim nation had a week of holidays in November for Eid al-Fitr, marking the end of the Muslim fasting month.

The company sold a total of 239,103 units from January through November, up 41.4 percent from a year earlier.

Astra said in a statement domestic car sales in November by members of the Association of Indonesian Automotive Industries (Gaikindo) jumped 62.2 percent to 35,162 units from a year earlier, but fell from October's 50,845 units, the year's peak.

Domestic auto sales by Gaikindo's members from January to November jumped 33.3 percent to 434,743 units from a year ago, surpassing an industry forecast for the whole year. Astra accounted for 44.6 percent of those sales.

Gaikindo had raised its 2004 vehicle sales forecast by over seven percent to 420,000 units, after first-half sales jumped 32 percent due to cheaper models and low financing rates.

Following are recent monthly auto sales data provided by Astra, a member of Gaikindo. They do not include sales from smaller car importers:

November October September
Gaikindo domestic 35,162 50,845 45,369
Gaikindo exports 5,291 6,902 4,361
Astra total 21,204 30,234 22,621
Annual vehicle sales (including exports):
2003 391,853
2002 360,081
2001 339,607
2000 345,653
1999 125,683
1998 68,413
1997 392,203

Yamauchi

December 11th, 2004, 08:26 AM

Same process is used in Iceland.

A hotbed of energy waits to be tapped in Indonesia

By Eric Unmacht | Correspondent of The Christian Science Monitor

JAKARTA, INDONESIA – Sitting on some 500 volcanoes - the world's highest concentration, known as the "ring of fire" - Indonesia could generate enough geothermal energy to electrify the entire country.

By using steam generated by lava flows under inactive volcanoes, geothermal power in the sprawling archipelago could generate more than 20,000 megawatts of electricity - an estimated 40 percent of the world's total geothermal reserves.

Instead, Indonesia's geothermal generation is just 800 megawatts, as leaders have focused instead on the country's hefty reserves of lucrative fossil fuels.

This, in theory, could change in the wake of the long-awaited ratification of the Kyoto Protocol by Russia last month, which set the stage for the global treaty to go into effect. But early signs suggest that the treaty's incentives are not luring renewable-energy investment in places like Indonesia, prompting efforts to fix the system's flaws.

The protocol assigns targets for greenhouse-gas emissions that are considered a major factor in global warming. Countries that exceed their targets can either reduce domestic emissions or buy credits from other countries. One of the ways they can purchase these credits is by funding environmentally friendly projects in developing countries under the so-called Clean Development Mechanism (CDM).

This would make renewable-energy efforts like geothermal, which has languished in Indonesia and elsewhere due to concerns over expense and risk, a potential magnet for millions of dollars in new investment.

But the initial reception of project proposals and emissions-credits trading show that many renewable-energy projects that reduce CO2 are not those most favored by the market. Instead, development dollars are chasing cheaper projects that reduce methane, nitrous oxide, or fluorocarbons - leaving unfunded the projects that may have the most long-term benefits for a country's citizens.

"From the CDM point of view, renewable [energy] is not attractive," says Agus Pratama Sari, executive director of Pelangi, an environmental think tank in Jakarta. "The aim of renewables is CO2 reduction and people who have business sense are going to go for things like methane.... I think this is the result of a strategic mistake that the [protocol designers] realized after."

Some organizations and individuals who have realized this have scrambled to find ways to close what they say are loopholes in the protocol and increase the incentive for CDM projects that have the added benefit of promoting carbon-reducing, renewable-energy development before the treaty goes into effect Feb. 16, 2005.

One of the solutions is the application of a "gold standard" to projects that not only fight global warming but also include such benefits as the promotion of renewable energy and participation by local communities. Supporters hope that more money will flow to those projects with the support of groups like the World Wildlife Fund, which launched the gold-standard label.

Another solution is to get governments on board. So far, countries like Indonesia have been reluctant to set up the necessary approval processes to get such projects off the ground for fear of losing their own exemption from emission targets. Officials in some developing countries are also proposing high fees for the projects in an effort to get a piece of the investment pie.

http://search.csmonitor.com/2004/1209/csmimg/p7a.gif

sanhen

December 11th, 2004, 11:55 AM

Dunno if this clasified as Indonesia Industry.
Some pics from Indonesia traditional market:

http://img98.exs.cx/img98/995/pict00123yw.jpg

http://img98.exs.cx/img98/6361/pict00132qp.jpg

Yamauchi

December 12th, 2004, 09:36 AM

Look at these resources Indonesia is blessed with. Hopefully some day it can be utilized and the fossil fuels can be exported to fuel development.

http://img36.exs.cx/img36/3946/power5lr.jpg

David-80

December 15th, 2004, 01:32 PM

Wednesday December 15, 1:51 PM

LG Electronics to Build Plasma TV Factory in Indonesia

SEOUL Dec 15 Asia Pulse - LG Electronics Inc. (KSE:066570) based in Seoul, South Korea, said it will build plasma TV factory in Indonesia in a bid to expand its market in that southeast Asian country.
TV market grew fast in Indonesia, a senior manager LG Electronic Inc. Tae Yeon Ko s told visiting reporters from Indonesia here on Wednesday.

Indonesia will be made the production base for LCD and Plasma television sets, Tae said.

However, concern over security still pose a hurdle in investment in Indonesia, he said.

(ANTARA)

David-80

December 16th, 2004, 03:17 PM

Heineken to brew beer in Indonesia

JAKARTA, Dec 16 (Reuters) - Dutch brewer Heineken plans to start brewing its branded beer in Indonesia in a bid to improve profitability and to tap the premium segment of the market.
PT Multi Bintang Indonesia Tbk , Heineken's 76 percent-owned local affiliate, said in a statement that it would brew Heineken under licence instead of importing it.

Indonesia, where beer consumption has been hit by weak purchasing power and fewer foreign tourists due to a string of terror attacks, has a per capita consumption of 0.6 litres a year -- the size of one standard local Heineken bottle -- lower than Malaysia's 10 litres and China's 18 litres.

"The company plans to produce Heineken beer in its factory under their (Heineken's) supervision. We will pay 7.2 percent of sales as a royalty," a statement from PT Multi Bintang Indonesia Tbk said.

"We used to import that brand to be sold here. After the study that we have done, it would be more profitable for us to do it ourselves," Bobby Noya, a director at Bintang, told Reuters.

Noya said Bintang controlled more than 60 percent of the beer market in Indonesia, the world's most populous Muslim nation.

He said the plan was subject to the approval of independent shareholders at a meeting on Jan. 14.

For the first nine months of 2004, Bintang's net profit fell 20.9 percent from the year-earlier period to 60.15 billion rupiah ($6.5 million) despite revenue growth of 25.4 percent.

In 2003 it booked a net profit of 90.2 billion rupiah, around six percent higher than the previous year, while sales rose 3.8 percent.

There was no trade in Bintang shares on Thursday. They last traded on Dec. 3 at 42,500 rupiah.

David-80

December 16th, 2004, 03:20 PM

Indonesia's Natural Rubber Exports Set to Rise This Year

JAKARTA, Dec 16 Asia Pulse - Indonesia's natural rubber exports in 2004 will increase compared to the 2003 exports both in volume and value, Secretary of the North Sumatera Natural Rubber Producers Association Syarbaini Zain predicted here Wednesday.
"The volume of Indonesia's natural rubber exports in 2004 may reach at least 1.6 million tons, a 13 per cent increase compared to last year's 1.4 million tons," he said.

The increased rubber exports this year, according to him, were thanks to increased world demand for the commodity and a boost of its price on the international market.

The price of natural rubber, SIR type, on international market, for example, on the third day of this week was recorded at US$1.20 per kg, a 10 per cent increase compared to price on the day before.

The increased price of the commodity also followed an agreement reached by the three world natural rubber producing countries - Indonesia, Malaysia and Thailand - to jointly curtail and reduce the volume of their exports at the time when world supply of rubber is high.

He further disclosed that most of the demand for natural rubber came from the advanced countries including the United States, China, Japan, Singapore, South Korea, Germany, Canada, Belgium and France.

China in 2004 had been predicted to become the biggest natural rubber importing country in the world after the United States.

He even estimated that the Chinese demand for Indonesian natural rubber in 2005 will increase in volume tailored to the speedy development of the industry in that country.

The high market potential of natural rubber in China provides an opportunity for Indonesia to boost its rubber production and exports.

The market potential of Indonesia's natural rubber in the last two years as a whole managed to reach the export market in 188 countries in the world.

(ANTARA)

Alvin

December 21st, 2004, 09:07 AM

Tuesday December 21, 03:41 PM

Indonesia's Electronic Sector Forecast To Grow 15% In 2005

JAKARTA, Dec 21 Asia Pulse - Indonesia's electronic industry is expected to have grown 15 per cent in 2004 or five percent faster than in 2003 because of a continuous increase in demand for electronic goods , buttressed by a projected economic growth rate of as high as six per cent, an industry spokesman said.

"The national economic growth rate of about six per cent is one of the factors contributing to the industry's growth in line with an increase in the public's purchasing power," Lee Keng Hyon, marketing director of PT Samsung Electronics Indonesia, said here Monday. ADVERTISEMENT

He said he believed the six-percent growth rate is likely to be reached considering President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono's seriousness in taking steps to increase national economic growth.

"We are optimistic the Indonesian government about the Indonesian government's ability to increase economic growth and to reduce unemployment ," he said.

In anticipation of higher demand for electronic goods in 2005, Samsung will launch a range of new products such as handphones, televisions and DVD players in 2005 , he said.

(ANTARA)

Yamauchi

January 3rd, 2005, 08:07 AM

:) Geothermal power.

Star to prepare US$ 170 million for Wayang Windu

Star Energy has prepared US$ 170 million to continue the development of Wayang Windu Geothermal Project that next year.

The geothermal project development (located in West Java) continued since, recently, the project transfer to a national oil and gas company.

"We will increase our investment around US$ 150-170 million for Wayang Windu Project. The project development will commence next year,” said Supramu Santosa, President Ditrector of Star Energy during the intermission of Bimasena International Energy Conference 2004 in Jakarta.

Meanwhile, President Director PLN Eddie Widiono explained that PLN is looking for another US$ 17 billion investment to develop 20,000 MW power plants in the next 10 years. “To develop the 20,000 MW in 10 years, PLN needs US$ 30 billion. PLN is able to provide US$ 9-10 billion, whil the government is expected to invest US$ 4 billion, and the rest comes from private sector (IPP).”

David-80

January 24th, 2005, 01:24 PM

Indonesia's Sanex to Exports Chinese Motorcycles to Taiwan

http://sg.yimg.com/i/aa/providers/asia_pulse.gif

JAKARTA, Jan 24 Asia Pulse - Publicly listed motorcycle assembler, PT Sanex Qianjiang Motor International (JSX:SQMI) said it will export 24,000 units of its Chinese motorcycles to Taiwan this year.
The exports starting in mid 2005, are part of the program of Sanex, an agent of Chinese motorcycle, for market expansion, Sanex Director Johan Y. Djuardi said.

Johan said the company will increase investment by US$6 million to buy assembling machines from China for its factory in Cikande, Banten, to increase its production capacity by 2,000 per months.

He said sales on the domestic market were valued only at Rp48 billion (US$5.33 million) in 2004 falling short of the target of Rp56 billion, but it represented a significant increase from 2003

David-80

January 24th, 2005, 01:26 PM

Hyundai to Make Indonesia a Production Base

http://sg.yimg.com/i/aa/providers/asia_pulse.gif

JAKARTA, Jan 24 Asia Pulse - South Korea's car maker PT Hyundai Mobil Indonesia (HMI) said Indonesia is almost certain to be made one of its production bases for its car products.
President of PT HMI Jongkie D. Soegiarto said Hyundai may adopt the strategy of one country one model to exploit the Asean market.

Jongkie said his company has assembled a number of models in Indonesia such as Atoz, the multipurpose vehicle Trajet and the sedan Accent and imports other models such as Getz, Matrix, Santa Fee and Grace.

Meanwhile PT Kia Mobil Indonesia (KMI), another car maker from South Korea said it is awaiting approval from its principal to build a factory in Indonesia.

KIA cars are assembled in the country using the facility of PT National Assembler.

Fir3blaze

January 25th, 2005, 10:56 AM

***Taken from www.jakartapost.com***

Government decides to adopt 'enclave' FTZ in Batam

Zakki P. Hakim, The Jakarta Post/Jakarta

The government finally decided to maintain the previous government's proposal for an "enclave" free trade zone on the industrial island of Batam, despite potential opposition within the House of Representatives.

Coordinating Minister for the Economy Aburizal Bakrie told reporters on Monday that the government decided to limit the free trade areas to certain places on the island despite the House's desire to make the whole island a free trade zone.

However, the minister believes the House will accept the enclave approach.

"There will be no conflict at the House," Aburizal stated on the sidelines of the CNBC Strategic Forum entitled "The New Indonesia 2005: Policy and Action".

Aburizal said this government's plan was slightly different from the previous one proposed by the Megawati administration.

The government will free manufacturers within the designated industrial zones from paying import duties, while those outside the zones can enjoy the same facility through bonded warehouses.

He said the government was still making assessments before making a decision on whether neighboring Rempang and Galang islands would be able to be complete free trade zones (FTZ).

During the forum, President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono said in his keynote speech that the government had a very good working relationship with the House.

"Vice President Jusuf Kalla's success in being elected leader of Golkar, the largest party in the House, will significantly add more stability to my government," he said.

Since Kalla took over the reins of Golkar in December, there has been no real opposition in the house as the party has 128 of 550 seats at the House, in addition to the administration's support from several medium-sized parties.

The previous government under Megawati Soekarnoputri and the previous House failed to reach an agreement on the status of Batam as an FTZ.

Last September, the House endorsed its bill that granted FTZ status to the whole of Batam Island. The bill was opposed by the government.

Without the government's approval, the law cannot take effect, creating further uncertainty for investors on the island, which, since 1978 has been promoted by the government as an industrial bonded zone to attract foreign investors.

Batam has become one of the most attractive manufacturing and industrial locations in Southeast Asia, playing host to some 600 foreign companies and absorbing over US$3 billion in foreign investment.

The government has argued that extending full FTZ status to the whole island would cause envy from other regional administrations that do not have FTZ status.

As soon as Susilo was sworn in this past October, the Singapore government, which is just a 45-minute ferry ride from Batam, expressed hope that the new government would quickly decide on the FTZ status of Batam. Otherwise, existing and potential investors would turn away to competing investment areas in China and Vietnam.

Singapore Foreign Minister George Yeo said Batam had the potential to become a leading industrial center like China's Shenzhen within 10 years, but only if the lingering legal uncertainty was quickly resolved.

Meanwhile, Indonesian Chamber of Commerce and Industry (Kadin) chairman MS Hidayat said the decision to turn all of Batam into an FTZ area or to adopt the enclave FTZ was not an issue for investors. It was more important that the status of Batam be clearly defined, he added.

David-80

January 25th, 2005, 02:08 PM

Wow, so they finally go with the enclave one...surprise surprise...but its good news since now, Batam found it status clear.

cheers

David-80

January 28th, 2005, 01:51 PM

Indonesia could become world's largest CPO exporter

BELITANG, South Sumatra (Antara): Indonesia could soon become the world's largest exporter of crude palm oil (CPO) if local administrations continued to expand the area under oil palm plantations and replace old palms with younger ones, President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono said on Friday.

"Several regions in Indonesia have a great potential for the development of oil palm plantations. It will up to the local administrations to seize the opportunity," he said.

"The heads of local administrations, however, should not issue licenses for plantations without going through the proper procedures. Do not let big business take people's land."

Susilo was in Belitang district, Ogan Komering Ulu regency, to mark the rice harvest and inaugurate a number of projects, including the Borang II gas-fired power plant.

Last year, Indonesia produced about 10.8 million tons of CPO and expects to produce 11.6 million tons this year.

Malaysia is the largest CPO producer in the world at the moment with a production of about 13.9 million tons last year.

The neighboring country has, however, now begun to shift its focus from CPO to higher-value products, such as stearic acid and olein. (***)

Fir3blaze

January 31st, 2005, 05:10 PM

*** Taken from www.jawapos.co.id***

Senin, 31 Jan 2005,
Produsen Emas Genjot Ekspor

SURABAYA - Stagnannya pasar perhiasan emas di dalam negeri, mendorong produsen makin giat menggarap pasar ekspor. Stagnasi di pasar domestik ini banyak dipicu oleh ekspektasi masyarakat bahwa situasi ekonomi secara umum memasuki awal 2005 ini belum sepenuhnya membaik.

"Daya beli yang turun akibat kenaikan beberapa komponen energi serta musibah yang melanda membuat omzet penjualan perhiasan emas domestik anjlok hinga 25 persen. Oleh karena itu, produsen dan pengusaha emas saat ini lebih memprioritaskan pasar luar negeri," ujar Jeffrey Tumewa, ketua umum Asosiasi Pengusaha Emas dan Permata Indonesia (Apepi) ketika dihubungi kemarin.

Menurut Jeffrey, penjualan ekspor sendiri tahun ini diperkirakan stagnan bila dibandingkan dengan tahun lalu. "Pemerintah harus pro aktif dengan memberikan kemudahan-kemudahan seperti dalam kebijakan pajak yang lebih kondusif, hal ini agar nantinya tidak ada cerita, bahwa produsen emas gulung tikar karena produknya tidak terserap oleh pasar," ungkapnya.

Hal ini disebabkan bisnis emas membutuhkan investasi yang tidak sedikit. "Investasi alat-alat produksi mencapai angka ratusan miliar rupiah, ini tidak bisa asal dialihkan pada usaha yang lainnya," urainya.

Sementara bila pemerintah menghapuskan pajak penjualan untuk emas, Jeffrey optimistis bahwa penjualan ekspor bisa meningkat hingga 50 persen. "Jadi bila angka penjualan ekspor tahun 2004 mencapai angka 40 ton, maka tahun 2005 ini penjualan ekspor sebesar 60 ton bisa kita raih," tambahnya.

Untuk mendukung penjualan ekspor tersebut langkah yang dilakukan Apepi adalah dengan mengadakan ekshibisi dan pelatihan untuk membuat desain. "Saat ini yang menjadi primadona adalah perpaduan dengan batu-batu mulia, seperti berlian, blue saphire, dan jamrud," terangnya.

Jeffrey juga menyebutkan langkah pembangunan gold center di Surabaya yang ditargetkan selesai akhir tahun ini juga dapat mendongkrak penjualan perhiasan emas. "Kami harapkan geudng tersebut dapat menjadi awal kebangkitna indutri emas Indonesia," tandasnya. (iw)

Alvin

February 25th, 2005, 01:38 PM

Indonesia sees 6 pct oil output fall in 2005
JAKARTA, Feb 25 (Reuters) - Indonesia estimated crude oil production would fall 6 percent in 2005 from last year's 968,200 barrels per day (bpd), an energy official said on Friday, with ageing fields compounded by a lack of significant new output.
Indonesia's crude oil production fell 2.2 percent to 952,600 barrels per day (bpd) in January from 974,000 bpd in December.

The Southeast Asian nation's condensate output was steady at 133,000 bpd in January, unchanged from December. It produced 129,800 bpd of condensate in 2004.

"Indonesia is making a hard effort to add to its oil production. However, oil production will decline naturally by 6 percent in 2005," Iin Arifin Takhyan, director general oil and gas, told reporters.

Indonesia has assumed oil and condensate production of 1.13 million bpd and a crude oil price of $24 a barrel in its 2005 budget.

"We will increase oil price in the 2005 budget to $35 per barrel from $24," Takhyan said.
I AM :
A Man A Woman
I'M SEEKING :
A Woman A Man

He reiterated that Indonesia exported a net of around 30,000 bpd of crude on average last year, although data has shown that the country was a net importer during certain months.

In 2004, Indonesia was a net crude importer in March, April, May, June, and July.

"Our net export is estimated to be lower in 2005, compared with around 30,000 bpd in 2004," Takhyan said.

Industry sources said Indonesia would find it difficult to add to its oil production because there was no significant additional output from new areas. Production from several other existing areas were continuing to decline.

"Certainly production will continue to decline because there is no significant additional output from new areas," one source said.

Caltex Pacific Indonesia, the biggest oil producer in Indonesia, said this week its oil production would fall by as much as 5 percent this year.

Caltex, owned by U.S. oil major ChevronTexaco Corp. , operates mostly ageing oilfields in central Sumatra where production is declining naturally.

Indonesia, Asia-Pacific's only member of the Organisation of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC), has a quota of 1.399 million bpd under OPEC's formal production limits of 27 million bpd. Condensate is not included in the limits.

Indonesia Mines and Energy Minister Purnomo Yusgiantoro has said the country was reviewing its OPEC membership.

Rachmat Sudibyo, chief of oil and gas watchdog BPMIGAS, said on Friday the government was still studying its membership in OPEC.

Alvin

February 25th, 2005, 01:40 PM

New US$3.5 BLN Oil Refinery Slated for S. Sulawesi, Indonesia
MAKASSAR, Indonesia, Feb 25 Asia Pulse - PT Intanjaya Agromegah Abadi (IAA) will build a US$3.5 billion oil refinery in Pare Pare, South Sulawesi, a local official said.
The plant will be built in cooperation with Inter Global Technologies (IGT) based in Texas, Pare Pare Mayor HM. Zain Katoe said.

Katoe said construction of the plant is expected to start next year involving a number of investors from China, Singapore, Saudi Arabia and the United States.

The oil refinery, which will use crude oil feedstock from Middle East, will supply oil fuels to a number of countries in the Asia Pacific region, he said.

Construction of the plant with a processing capacity of 300,000 barrels of crude oil per stream day and special terminal and other supporting infrastructure will take 48 months, he said.

(ANTARA)

tata

March 1st, 2005, 10:35 PM

Coca Cola will have new competitor. Let's see if finally customers win...

Mecca Cola To Set Up Bottling Plants In Indonesia
Shakir Husain, Bernama.com - 2005-02-28 16:49:23

DUBAI, Feb 24 (Bernama) -- Mecca Cola, which has built its reputation as an "alternative" to Coke and Pepsi, will set up eight bottling plants in Indonesia as it moves to expand business to new countries.

"Starting with Jakarta, we plan to have eight factories across Indonesia by 2008," Mecca Cola World chairman Taoufik Mathlouthi told Bernama.

Launched amid calls for boycott of American products in the early initial phase of the Palestinian uprising, Mecca Cola still appeals to the consumer's conscience against the "US economic hegemony".

Although Indonesia is the world's largest Muslim country, Mathlouthi does not see it as Mecca Cola's biggest market.

"Mexico is going to be our biggest market," he said in an interview in Dubai, the company's new corporate base since Mecca Cola World relocated from France to the United Arab Emirates in mid-2004.

Mecca Cola is currently available in 64 countries, including Malaysia, and Mathlouthi is now focusing on building production capacity and distribution networks.

In Brazil, the company plans for an annual production capacity of 500 million litres of drinks.

Besides cashing in on the frustration at US policies in Muslim countries, Mecca Cola has received further boost from the anti-globalisation movement that shares Mathlouthi's sentiment against the dominance of US corporations.

Mecca Cola sold one billion litres of drinks in 2004, bringing in US$30 million in sales revenues to the company, Mathlouthi said.

The company's popularity has also resulted in counterfeit drinks being sold under the Mecca Cola label in some countries.

"We are facing a serious problem of fake drinks being sold under our brand in Pakistan and Kenya," Mathlouthi said.

Saudi Arabia could prove to be a lucrative market for Mecca Cola but the company has so far failed to secure the Saudi government's approval for launching its products there.

Yamauchi

March 1st, 2005, 11:39 PM

That is possibly the cheesiest name I've ever heard.

Alvin

March 2nd, 2005, 12:27 AM

India, Indonesia to boost cooperation in IT, space, biotechnology

Tue Mar 1,12:12 PM ET Technology - AFP

NEW DELHI (AFP) - Indonesia and India agreed in talks to launch a new phase in information technology, biotechnology and space cooperation, officials said.

Visiting Indonesian Foreign Minister Hassan Wirajuda held talks with his Indian counterpart Natwar Singh and also met with Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh.

During the meeting of the joint commission between India and Indonesia they reviewed the progress made by five joint working groups in areas such as trade and counter-terrorism and identified action plans for each.

"The Indonesian side sought cooperation and collaboration with the Indian side in information technology, biotechnology and space," said Indian foreign office spokesman Navtej Sarna.

"Both sides decided to work towards enhancing cooperation in the compressed natural gas (CNG) sector, with Delhi's experience being replicated in Jakarta," he said.

In May 2002, all public transport vehicles in New Delhi had to abide by court orders to convert and run on CNG. Experts say that Delhi, one of the world's most populous cities, has seen pollution levels drop after switching to CNG.

Nearly 10,000 new cars jostle for space in New Delhi every month. The metropolis vies with Mexico City as the world's most polluted capital.

"The Indonesian foreign minister also thanked Prime Minister Manmohan Singh for Indias assistance during the tsunami crisis and briefed him on rehabilitation efforts. They also reviewed the entire gamut of India-Indonesia bilateral relations," said Sarna.

In its biggest-ever peace-time relief operation, India dispatched over 4,000 troops to tsunami disaster areas, air-dropped food and used delivered medical aid and relief supplies to Sri Lanka, Maldives and Indonesia.

David-80

March 2nd, 2005, 01:18 AM

Mecca cola?? :rofl:

cheers

tata

March 2nd, 2005, 01:35 PM

yea I saw it once in Swiss TV about this beverage but never found it in supermarket. Perhaps they sell it in small stores.

@yama: cheesiest?

bahar

March 4th, 2005, 12:29 PM

SINGAPORE, March 4 (Reuters) - Indonesia's Pertamina plans to start up a new gasoline unit in April at its Balongan plant to produce cleaner petrol and will halt naphtha exports to feed the unit, sources familiar with refinery operations said on Friday.
Pertamina's new 52,000-barrel-per-day (bpd) reforming unit should be started in mid-April at full capacity. But rates will eventually be reduced to 70 percent of capacity due to a lack of feedstock, the sources said.
The new reforming unit has a 29,000-bpd platformer that will produce 98-octane reformate. It will also have a 23,000-bpd isomerisation unit that will make 87-octane gasoline.
"All of the gasoline that is produced will be used for local consumption," a source said.
The unit will also produce some liquefied petroleum gas.
Pertamina is importing 4.68 million barrels of gasoline this month via term and spot tenders.
Traders have said import volumes were about 30 percent above year-ago levels due to fast-rising demand in the country and a government push to phase out leaded gasoline this year.
It is estimated that some 60 percent of cars in Indonesia still use leaded petrol.
Pertamina, which has been exporting roughly 50,000 tonnes of naphtha each month, plans to halt naphtha exports once the new unit is brought onstream.
"There is a problem with feedstock availability. Pertamina will have to consider naphtha imports," another source said.
Some of the naphtha feedstock could also be drawn from Pertamina's Balikpapan, Cilacap, Dumai or Plaju refineries, the sources said.
The Balongan refinery in West Java has a total refining capacity of 125,000 bpd.
Indonesia, Asia-Pacific's only OPEC member, has nine refineries spread across its sprawling archipelago totally 1 million bpd.

Alvin

March 9th, 2005, 11:00 AM

INTERVIEW:WHO:Indonesia Bird Flu Vaccine Gamble Pays Off
By Phelim Kyne
Of DOW JONES NEWSWIRES

JAKARTA (Dow Jones)--Indonesia's apparent success in containing a national outbreak of HN51 avian influenza last year through mass poultry vaccinations may boost global efforts to prevent a long-expected bird flu-linked global pandemic, World Health Organization officials said recently.

Indonesia's move to vaccinate poultry rather than implement mass slaughter of birds in suspected outbreak zones to stem an outbreak of the HN51 virus in 14 of the country's 33 provinces defied international practice and initially prompted concerns, WHO Representative for Indonesia, Georg Petersen, said.

But the vaccination campaign appears to have helped Indonesia to contain its outbreak, while neighbors including Vietnam, Cambodia and Thailand - that chose to mass slaughter birds instead - still battle new flare-ups of the illness.

"Anecdotally and all observations show that it looks like (mass vaccinations) have helped, but you can't say that scientifically," Peterson said

Indonesia developed and deployed the poultry vaccine without international standard trials of its efficacy as a fast-response emergency measure to protect domestic poultry stocks.

But the WHO is now anxious for scientific proof that the vaccine is effective in stemming HN51 infections in poultry populations, hoping that the method may be applied in other regional countries to stem the spread of the virus.

"It seems as if vaccination is part of the solution," Jakarta-based WHO technical officer for emerging diseases, Steven Bjorge, said.

"More and more we find global conferences talking about the role of vaccination (in containing avian flu) because it's been seen that some countries like China, Hong Kong and Indonesia seem to be having success."

Indonesia's capacity to control future outbreaks of HN51 is essential to regional economic stability and global health security.

The regional avian flu outbreak in the first quarter of 2004 killed 27 people in Vietnam and Thailand and cost producers in Southeast Asia millions of dollars in losses from culled stocks. Thailand alone slaughtered more than 30 million birds last year to control the outbreak which is still not fully contained.

HN51 May Power Deadly Pandemic

The HN51 virus strain has been linked to the deaths of an additional 19 people since then and the WHO fears the virus may mutate into a form that can easily pass between people, sparking a global pandemic that could kill millions.

"What happens here is of major importance to the whole world in our efforts to contain avian influenza from spreading to humans... (because) Indonesia might be one of the places in Southeast Asia where a pandemic could start," Petersen said.

Unfortunately, Indonesia may rival Cambodia and Vietnam as a regional weak link in its capacity to effectively control and contain a possible future outbreak of a more dangerous human variant HN51 strain.

The government devoted only 0.72% of total gross domestic product to health sector funding in 2002, recent figures indicate. Those funds are overwhelmingly devoted to addressing diseases like tuberculosis, which kills around 140,000 Indonesians annually, as well as rampant gastroenteral illnesses that contribute to the country's relatively high infant mortality rate of 35 deaths per 1000 births.

An outbreak of a human variant of HN51 would severely strain Indonesia's health system, which has stocked only about 2,000 doses of oseltamivir, a drug which has shown promise in treating avian flu infections in humans. Oseltamivir is marketed as Tamiflu by Swiss pharmaceutical company Roche Holding AG (RHHBY).

Petersen said that Indonesian authorities had prioritized improving their avian flu surveillance and reporting system and that the Australian government had provided $700,000 in funding to the WHO to help boost Indonesia's capacity in that regard.

"(The system) might not be robust enough to pick up a cluster of cases of humans with avian influenza because the country is so large," Petersen said

"A crucial issue for the years to come is to see that the (avian flu) surveillance system in Indonesia is improved and brought up to date."

Alvin

March 12th, 2005, 02:12 AM

Mazda akan produksi MPV di RI

JAKARTA (Bisnis): Mazda Motor Corp kemungkinan akan menjadikan Indonesia sebagai basis produksi model multi purpose vehicle (MPV) sebagai salah satu strategi bersaing di pasar regional Asia Tenggara.
Frans C. Harsono, Chief Executive Officer PT Unicor Prima Motor (UPM), distributor eksklusif Mazda di Indonesia, mengatakan prinsipal otomotif Jepang tersebut sudah memutuskan kebijakan perakitan lokal di kawasan Asean.

"Di Indonesia, kami berencana merakit model kendaraan serbaguna seperti Mazda-5 New Premacy. Dari sisi pasar dan sumber daya, saya kira Indonesia sudah siap," ujarnya kepada Bisnis, kemarin.

Saat ini, menurut dia, Mazda sedang melakukan kajian rencana perakitan sejumlah model kendaraan di Indonesia, termasuk model MPV Premacy yang sukses di pasar Jepang.

Kunci pasar Asean

Menurut dia, produksi lokal merupakan kunci utama bagi Mazda untuk mampu bersaing dengan merek lain di pasar lokal maupun pasar bersama yakni Asia Tenggara.

Frans mengungkapkan merek otomotif Jepang yang pernah berjaya di Indonesia pada 1990-an dengan produk lokal sedan MR, sejak dua tahun lalu berupaya bangkit kembali setelah terkena dampak krisis ekonomi 1998.

Menurut dia, upaya membangkitkan kejayaan itu diawali dengan peluncuran Mazda-6 dan Mazda-2, serta RX-8 pada 2002. Namun, dua model pertama gagal masuk ke pasar karena tidak memiliki konten lokal Asean.

Sementara untuk model sport car RX-8 yang memiliki konten Filipina, lanjutnya, cukup sukses di pasar dengan angka penjualan rata-rata 10 unit per bulan.

Setelah meluncurkan Mazda-3 pada akhir 2003, menurut dia, PT UPM pada tahun ini berencana mengeluarkan Mazda-5. "Tetapi kami memang sedang menyiapkan konten lokal Asean, sebab bila tidak, kami sulit berjualan di pasar regional akibat beban pajak yang besar," ujarnya.

Frans mengatakan saat ini Mazda sedang mempertimbangkan kemungkinan Indonesia menjadi basis perakitan Premacy mengingat potensi pasar yang besar di samping kesiapan dan kemampuan sumber daya produksi yang cukup memadai.

Di Asean, menurut dia, Mazda memiliki tiga fasilitas perakitan yakni Indonesia, Filipina, dan Thailand, sementara kapasitas pabrik Mazda di Jepang saat ini sudah mencapai kapasitas penuh yakni 1,1 juta unit per tahun.

Berdasarkan laporan dalam situs resminya, Mazda pada tahun lalu membukukan penjualan di pasar domestik maupun ekspor sebanyak 868.688 unit dan menargetkan total penjualan pada 2006 menjadi 1,25 juta unit.

Di pasar Asean, perusahaan otomotif tersebut menyiapkan strategi kunci berupa ekspansi jaringan distribusi di regional ini.

Menurut dia, merek Mazda sejak lama telah masuk ke pasar Indonesia dengan memproduksi MR90 sebagai model kendaraan yang cukup populer pada 1990-an.

Bahkan, menurut dia, Mazda telah menginvenstasikan dana cukup banyak untuk membangun fasilitas produksi yang lebih besar sebelum terkena krisis ekonomi yang menghantam di kawasan Asia pada 1998.

"Kehadiran Mazda di Indonesia sendiri sudah cukup lama yakni sebelum merakit MR, sejak dimiliki oleh keluarga Lubis. Pada saat itu Mazda juga merakit Land Rover," ujar Frans.

Namun, menurut dia, pembangunan pabrik yang menggunakan dana dalam dolar Amerika Serikat telah mengakibatkan bisnis Mazda di Indonesia kolaps meski pada 1997 penjualan model sedan mencapai angka 600 per bulan.

Mazda Motor Corp berambisi bisa menjual kendaraan pada 2006 hingga 1,25 juta unit di seluruh dunia.

Dengan angka penjualan sebesar itu, Mazda beharap bisa meraih laba operasional paling tidak 100 miliar yen dengan debt equity ratio (DER) di bawah 100%. (mfm)

Alvin

March 14th, 2005, 06:01 AM

Monday March 14, 03:12 PM

Philip Morris offers to buy Indonesia's Sampoerna for 5.2 bln dlrs

JAKARTA (AFP) - US tobacco giant Philip Morris has offered to buy Sampoerna, heavy-smoking Indonesia's third largest cigarette maker, in a deal worth 48 trillion rupiah (5.2 billion dollars).

Philip Morris agreed to acquire a 40 percent stake in Sampoerna for 10,600 rupiah a share -- 20 percent higher than the closing price of 8,850 last Thursday -- and offered to buy the remainder for the same amount.

The move, one of the largest tobacco industry acquisitions in recent years, would allow the operating arm of the Altria Group, formerly known as Philip Morris, to tap into an expanding market as global anti-smoking laws and pressure to tackle its harmful effects erode profits.

Some 70 percent of Indonesia's 213 million people smoke and 57,000 deaths a year are blamed on tobacco.

ADVERTISEMENT

"Our investment in Sampoerna is a great opportunity to significantly expand our business in the world's fifth-largest and growing cigarette market," Andre Calantzopoulos, president of Philip Morris International, said in a statement.

"Today's announcement reflects our confidence in the economic future of Indonesia and its tobacco industry, and positions us for profitable future growth by partnering with a well-managed and successful company that has an outstanding distribution and manufacturing infrastructure."

Sampoerna, which makes kretek or clove cigarettes popular throughout Indonesia, produces net revenues of nearly 1.0 billion dollars annually, the statement said.

Tobacco firms are steady profit earners on Jakarta's stock exchange, which has otherwise struggled to attract foreign cash with corruption, other abuses and high political risk levels hampering efforts to recover from the 1997-98 Asian financial crisis.

Sampoerna, whose shares almost doubled in value over the last year, was up 15.8 percent at 10,250 rupiah in early trade Monday.

Traders were caught off guard by the announcement, which comes just months after a Sampoerna subsidiary struck a deal to distribute Marlboro and other leading Philip Morris brands across Indonesia.

"It is surprising because we did not think of this scenario before," said Prayoga Triyono, an analyst with brokerage firm PT Henan Putirai.

Alvin

March 14th, 2005, 09:12 AM

Monday March 14, 06:51 PM

Kyocera To Shift Indonesian Plant To China

JAKARTA, March 14 Asia in Pulse - KYOCERA CORP. (TSE:6971) will shut down its electronic parts manufacturing plant on Indonesia's Batam Island at the end of this month. It will shift production to China.

* Established in 1995, the facility employs about 500 and produces thermal printer heads and other electronic parts.

* By closing the plant, Kyocera is following several other Japanese firms that have moved out of the Southeast Asian nation due to rising lawlessness and increasing labor costs.

Alvin

March 17th, 2005, 08:21 AM

Malaysia, Indonesia vie for oil in troubled waters
KUALA LUMPUR, March 16 (Reuters) - Malaysia could challenge neighbour Indonesia to become Southeast Asia's top oil producer, in a high-stakes rivalry underscored by a tense dispute over little-explored waters off Borneo.
Malaysia's output is estimated to be less than 200,000 barrels per day (bpd) behind Indonesia and its quest for oil and gas is taking it into deeper waters and grey areas of sovereignty where drilling can be deemed a hostile act.

Indonesia has sent warships and fighter jets to waters where the two countries had awarded overlapping concessions to major oil companies, although only one firm has so far struck oil in an area better known as a haunt of divers seeking undersea wildlife.

Crude oil production in Indonesia fell to a 34-year low in February at 940,000 bpd, compared with almost 1.6 million bpd in the early 1990s. Malaysia is pumping 750,000 bpd, state oil firm Petronas said.

"It's possible to see a renaissance in Indonesian production, but the recent trend has been declining," said Noel Tomnay, vice president for Asia Pacific at energy research consultancy Wood Mackenzie.

"Though there has been so much exploration success in the waters off Sabah, none of it has been monetised," Tomnay said, referring to the waters off Borneo island. ADVERTISEMENT

"One can be fairly confident of seeing a billion-plus barrels of oil in undeveloped reserves there."

Oil major BP reckons that at the end of 2003, Malaysia has 4.0 billion barrels of proved oil reserves and Indonesia 4.4 billion barrels.

But Malaysia has had a string of high-profile discoveries in deepwater off Sabah since the early 2000s with estimated reserves of 300 million up to at least 700 million barrels each.

"Malaysia, I would say, could, if it wanted to, produce 900,000 to a million barrels (daily) within two to two and a half years," said Al Troner, managing director of Asia Pacific Energy Consulting, which is based in Seattle.

Investment in Indonesia exploration, however, has fallen sharply in recent years due to a lack of clarity in legal, fiscal and regulatory frameworks, suffocating bureaucracy and rising costs.

MATURING FIELDS

Deepwater drilling technology has enabled oil companies to explore for reserves that can lie well over 2 km (1.2 miles) below the waves and were previously ignored as uneconomic.

Oil prices above $50 a barrel are spurring firms to step up exploration and drilling.

Indonesia and Malaysia are Southeast Asia's biggest producers of oil, but are grappling with declining output from maturing fields.

But a dash for deepwater prospects has led separate disputes between Kuala Lumpur and neighbour Brunei as well as Indonesia.

"It's bringing it (boundary disputes) into focus for sure, though most of these disputes have been around for ages," said an industry consultant based in Singapore, who declined to be identified.

Brunei and Malaysia have been in talks since 2003 when the Malaysian navy chased off an exploration team led by European major Total SA in the South China Sea.

Indonesia protested in February when Petronas awarded two blocks in the Sulawesi Sea to local unit Petronas Carigali and Shell Malaysia . Last year, Jakarta awarded Unocal Corp. acreage in the area.

The dispute is the biggest test of relations in years, sharpened by Indonesia's sensitivity to territorial challenges after the loss of East Timor, a province that voted to become independent in 1999.

Interest among global oil firms in Malaysia's deepwater has grown since 2002, when U.S. firm Murphy Oil announced the major Kikeh discovery off Sabah in a 4.4-million-acre (1.62 million hectare) area with reserves estimated at 400 million to 700 million barrels.

This month, Malaysia gave exploration rights to U.S. energy firm ConocoPhilipps for a deepwater block off Sabah, putting it in the running with Murphy and Shell for a bigger slice of the country's deepwater riches. (Additional reporting by Mark Bendeich)

Alvin

March 18th, 2005, 01:35 PM

great news!!

Iran Signs Initial Accord to Build $3 Bln Refinery in Indonesia
March 18 (Bloomberg) -- Iran signed an initial agreement to build a $3 billion refinery in Indonesia, Purnomo Yusgiantoro, Indonesia's oil minister, said in Jakarta today.

National Iranian Oil Co. and PT Pertamina, Indonesia's state oil company, will build the refinery and the Iranian company will take a 30 percent stake, Purnomo told reporters in Jakarta. Iran and Indonesia haven't decided where the refinery will be located, Purnomo said.

Indonesia must import about one-fifth of its oil products each year because its 1.083 million barrels a day of refining capacity isn't enough to meet domestic demand.

Alvin

March 19th, 2005, 04:39 AM

India seeks Asian manufacturing foothold in Indonesia

George Leopold
EE Times
(03/17/2005 4:32 AM EST)

BATAM, Indonesia — India and Japan are seeking special trade status in this government-sponsored industrial zone near Singapore that is dominated by electronics production, according to the head of the Batam Industrial Development Authority.
Ismeth Abdullah, who also serves as acting governor of Indonesia's Riau Islands province, said its Asian neighbors want to create separate industrial parks on the fast-growing island dotted with construction projects and housing developments.

Abdullah said in an interview with visiting U.S. reporters that India in particular would use a Batam-based industrial park as a means of establishing a regional technology presence. One likely focus for an Indian industrial park here would be automotive components manufacturing, Abdullah said.

The proposed industrial parks would also further the Indonesian government's goal of lessening its heavy reliance on manufacturing projects from neighboring Singapore, which lies about 40 minutes by ferry to the northeast across the Malacca Straits. "We don't want to depend heavily on Singapore-based companies," said Abdullah, who is currently campaigning to become Batam's full-time governor.

The Batam authority was created by the Indonesia government about 32 years ago to attract foreign investment to the island. With labor and production costs rising in Singapore and land there scarce, most of Batam's light manufacturing projects and financing have come from Singapore-based Asian companies.

Japan already has a strong presence on the island, manufacturing a range of electronics products. Electronics manufacturing accounts for about 40 percent of Batam's projects, according to the authority.

Electronics manufacturers with operations here include Infineon Technologies, Sony Corp., Philips, Thomson Multimedia and Advanced Interconnect Technologies, a chip test and assembly company.

While there is a heavy Japanese presence on the island, there are so far relatively few Indian companies here. Hence, India's request for its own industrial park is seen as an attempt by the Indian government to drive a stake in the ground as a regional manufacturer, Abdullah said.

Alvin

March 19th, 2005, 05:33 AM

Oil Wealth Wasting Away in Indonesia
By KEITH BRADSHER

Published: March 19, 2005

ALONGAN, Indonesia - Roaring all day from the top of a chimney at a state-owned refinery here, a 30-foot-high roiling column of orange flames spewed vast clouds of black smoke visible for miles around. A 12-year-old compressor had broken down, refinery officials explained, and huge quantities of valuable propylene were being burned off for safety reasons.

Advertisement

Indonesia's oil industry, like the refinery, has been burning money for years, squandering the nation's mineral wealth through underinvestment, bureaucracy, corruption and a wariness of multinational companies.

So few new wells have been drilled in the last decade that annual production has dropped by more than a third. And the draining of existing fields has brought Indonesia, one of the oldest members of the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries, to the ignominy of having to import oil in the last four months of 2004.

As OPEC struggles with how to respond to oil prices rising above $56 a barrel, Indonesia's failure is more than just a tragedy for a poor developing country that has failed to take advantage of a potential windfall. As OPEC's only Asian member, Indonesia should be ideally positioned to meet soaring demand from China and the rest of Asia.

Instead, its increasingly meager output has forced officials in Beijing and other Asian capitals to look farther afield, relying more on pariah states like Sudan and bringing more oil through the Strait of Malacca, where pirates have been preying on tankers and where governments worry increasingly about possible terrorist attacks. Now, Indonesian officials say they are determined to make their country an exporter again. They have raised prices and cut subsidies for gasoline and diesel to discourage waste. They have passed new laws and tax policies to encourage multinational companies to invest.

And while populists are calling for Indonesia to withdraw from OPEC, in part to save nearly $2 million a year in membership fees, Purnomo Yusgiantoro, the country's oil minister and the holder of OPEC's rotating presidency in 2004, has been holding them off by setting up a committee to study the issue and promising a brighter future for Indonesia's oil industry.

"Indonesia is expecting to produce more oil in the future," Mr. Purnomo said. "Even if we become a net importer for one year, or less than one year, what does it mean?"

A turnaround may not be so easy, though, and Indonesia's subsidies are especially ruinous. Because of them, Indonesians have been burning cheap fuel by the tankful, contributing to urban sprawl and traffic jams in Jakarta that rival those in Los Angeles.

At the same time, factories rely heavily on diesel generators. The electricity from the generators would be more costly than electricity from coal-fired power plants if diesel fuel were not subsidized.

The question is whether Indonesia is doing enough. While new laws and tax rules have been passed, regulations that would put them into effect have not been issued.

More seriously, a 29 percent increase in retail gasoline and diesel prices on Feb. 28 still leaves both fuels selling for less than $1 a gallon. And the price increase assumed that oil would cost $35 a barrel in 2005. This means that the subsidies, which absorbed one-sixth of government spending in 2005, will cost even more.

"It's going to have a huge impact," said Ramesh Subramaniam, the principal economist for Indonesia at the Asian Development Bank.

Already, the 29 percent increase has provoked large street demonstrations and even fistfights on the floor of Parliament. The political debate in Indonesia now is over whether to roll back the increase or simply form a committee to study whether to roll it back. Further increases in fuel prices are no longer even under public discussion.

Mr. Purnomo said in an interview that he hoped to reverse a slide in production, which fell to 950,000 barrels a day late in 2004 from 1.6 million barrels a day in 1991. Mr. Purnomo said that he expected production to rebound to at least one million barrels a day and stay there.

Alvin

March 21st, 2005, 01:11 PM

Mar 21 15:29

JAPANESE INVESTOR TO BUILD JAKARTA NEW SEAPORT

This online news service is supplied to readers solely for internal use. Retransmission, dissemination or publication, whether in print, electronic or other means, is expressly forbidden without written authorization from LKBN ANTARA.

Jakarta (ANTARA News) - A Japanese investor will start developing the Jakarta New Seaport when the overlapping rules over its management have been settled, Jakarta Governor Sutiyoso said here on Monday.

"The construction of the port can be started as soon as the overlapping claims over port management are solved," the governor said when opening an international workshop on competitive port development.

He said that the Japanese investor was now ready to build the port infrastructure worth Rp8 trillion and it would be a pity thing if the Japanese investor canceled its plan only because of the overlapping rules and rights over its management.

The governor did not name the Japanese investor who would be given the chance to develop the seaport.

"There are overlapping claims over the port management rights so that we hold this workshop in hope that the participants would formulate a solution," the governor said.

He said the development of infrastructure, ports in particular, in Indonesia is lacking behind if compared with that of other developing countries.

"South Korea`s seaport has developed into the fourth largest port in the world. The management of the port is not carried out by the central government but by the Pusan city administration," he said.

He hoped that various rulings which hampered the development of the seaport would be revised so that the rights of the state-owned port operator Pelindo and the Jakarta government over the port management would be made clear.

The governor said his government did not gain any benefit from the operation of the uncompetitive Tanjung Priok port.

"We get nothing but we have the duty to upgrade access roads to the port," he added.(*)

Yamauchi

March 21st, 2005, 08:26 PM

Indonesia wants nuke power, aware of terrorist threat

PARIS, March 21 (Reuters) - Indonesia is committed to developing nuclear power to meet its rising energy needs and has taken all the necessary steps to protect its facilities against terrorist attacks, an Indonesian official said on Monday.

"Indonesia is preparing to operate (an) NPP (nuclear power plant) most likely in the next decade," Indonesia's ambassador to the U.N. International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), Thomas Aquino Sriwidjaja, told a conference on the future of nuclear power.

"The introduction of a nuclear power programme by the Indonesian government would not only serve as a solution to the rising demand for electricity, but is also expected to help save and prolong fossil energy for other purposes, as well as a part of global efforts to reduce global warming effects," he said.

Nuclear energy produces almost no greenhouse gases, in contrast to fuel fuels.

Sriwidjaja called on the more developed countries of the world to help Indonesia develop its nuclear energy programme.

He also said Indonesia -- which has signed the nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) and the IAEA's Additional Protocol permitting more intrusive, short-notice inspections -- was aware of the threat posed by terrorists aiming to acquire nuclear materials to use in weapons or to attack atomic facilities.

"Indonesia has taken the necessary measures to minimise any possible threat to its own nuclear facilities (and) has also improved and strengthened the physical protection of the existing nuclear facilities in accordance with international standard requirements," Sriwidjaja said.

Indonesia, the world's most populous Moslem country, has suffered the most bomb attacks of any state in Southeast Asia, including the 2003 bombing of the J.W. Marriott Hotel in Jakarta that killed 12 people, and nightclub bombings on the resort island of Bali in 2002 that killed 202, mostly foreign tourists.

tata

March 21st, 2005, 09:19 PM

"Indonesia has taken the necessary measures to minimise any possible threat to its own nuclear facilities (and) has also improved and strengthened the physical protection of the existing nuclear facilities in accordance with international standard requirements," Sriwidjaja said.

do we have it already? or I read wrong

Alvin

March 21st, 2005, 11:13 PM

Indonesia moving ahead with plans for nuclear power

2 hours, 23 minutes ago Asia - AFP

PARIS (AFP) - Indonesia is moving ahead with plans for a civilian nuclear power program, Jakarta's ambassador to the UN atomic agency Thomas Aquino Sriwidjaja said in Paris.

AFP/File Photo

Speaking at a conference on nuclear power here, Sriwidjaja said Indonesia, the world's largest Muslim country, was "preparing to operate a nuclear power plant by most likely in the next decade."

Like Iran (news - web sites), which the Vienna-based International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) is investigating on US charges that it is secretly developing nuclear weapons, Indonesia is a major oil producer.

Nevertheless, Sriwidjaja said Indonesia is having difficulties meeting its domestic energy demand. "The oil and gas reserves in Indonesia are insufficient to balance the rapidly increasing demand for energy, particularly in the form of electricity," he said.

An IAEA-supported study found that Indonesia needs an energy mix "in which the contribution of oil should be reduced and replaced by gas, coal, renewable energy and other alternative energy, including nuclear energy," Sriwidjaja said.

He said Indonesia was seeking help from developed nuclear states in technology, investment and research and would fight anti-nuclear sentiment with a public information program.

Indonesia has also implemented anti-terrorist measures to protect its nuclear research facilities.

Yamauchi

March 21st, 2005, 11:21 PM

tata: I think he is just referring to possible nuclear research facilities or something along those lines.

Here's a cool map of all the nuclear power plants around the world:

http://www.insc.anl.gov/pwrmaps/map/world_map.png

tata

March 22nd, 2005, 07:54 AM

tata: I think he is just referring to possible nuclear research facilities or something along those lines.

Thanks for clarification Yama. (How come you practically know many things? I certainly envy you ;) ).

One last question, is there a nuclear plant Philippines? From the map it looks like it does.

Yamauchi

March 22nd, 2005, 08:31 AM

It's a bit complicated. A Filipino president in the 70s built the reactor due to the worldwide energy crisis. When it was completed in the 80s an international team inspected it and deemed it unsafe because it was on a earthquake faultline and near an active volcano. So, it has never operated or generated power, but it's still there for some reason. That would make Indonesia the first Southeast Asian country with nuclear power.

Fir3blaze

March 23rd, 2005, 04:20 AM

Hmm...wouldn't it be dangerous for us then? I mean, most part of indonesia (including Java) lies on fault lines and have large number of active volcanoes. In this regard, i think the safest place would be in kalimantan. :D

Alvin

March 23rd, 2005, 09:39 AM

Indonesia Expects Crude Output To Rise To 1.3M B/D By '08
JAKARTA (Dow Jones)--The Indonesian government expects the country's crude oil output to rise to 1.3 million barrels a day by 2008, with additional output expected to come mostly from new fields, an official said Wednesday.

"We have set a target to produce 1.3 million b/d by 2008," said Rachmat Sudibyo, the chairman of the upstream oil and gas regulating body BP Migas.

ADVERTISEMENT

Indonesia, the only Southeast Asian member of OPEC, produced 942,000 b/d of crude in February, which analysts said is the lowest level in 30 years, due to dwindling reserves and a lack of new exploration activities in the last five years or so.

Rachmat said that some 180,000 b/d is expected to come from the Cepu field, and 7,500 b/d from the Jeruk field, which is being jointly developed by Australia's Santos Ltd. (STO.AU) and Indonesia's Medco Energi International (MEDC.JK).

The fate of the Cepu field, however, remains unclear as the state-owned oil and gas company PT Pertamina (PTM.YY) is still locked in lengthy talks with Exxon Mobil Corp. (XOM) on revenue-sharing from the field, which is on the border between central and east Java.

The development of marginal fields across the country is expected to approximately 30,000 b/d, whereas the utilization of chemical injection method in Dumai field by PT Caltex Pacific Indonesia is expected to add another 30,000 b/d, Rachmat told reporters.

He added that Indonesia is still a net crude exporter, with net exports of around 50,000 b/d. On the other hand, fuel consumption is rising at an annual rate of 6%, which could threaten the sustainability of the country's status as a net crude oil exporter.

For several months last year, Indonesia was a net crude oil importer, and this has sparked calls from politicians for Indonesia to quit its OPEC membership, saving the country $2 million in annual membership fees.

Alvin

March 23rd, 2005, 02:07 PM

Indonesia revives nuclear power plan
March 23, 2005 - 12:16AM

Page Tools
Email to a friend Printer format
An Indonesian plan to build two full-size nuclear reactors has outraged green groups and surprised analysts, who warned it would be a disaster-in-waiting for the volcanic island chain that is plagued by earthquakes and terrorism.

Indonesia's ambassador to the UN International Atomic Energy Agency, Thomas Aquino Sriwidjaja, says Jakarta has revived a plan to have nuclear power within 10 years.

He told a Paris conference on the future of nuclear power yesterday that the world's most populous Muslim nation needs to expand its sources of energy, even though it is a member of the OPEC oil cartel.

He promised the proposed plants would be fully protected against the threat of terrorist attacks, despite Indonesia having been rocked by a series of deadly bombings in recent years.

"The introduction of a nuclear power program by the Indonesian Government would not only serve as a solution to the rising demand for electricity, but is also expected to help save and prolong fossil energy for other purposes, as well as a part of global efforts to reduce global warming effects," Mr Sriwidjaja said.

Advertisement
AdvertisementIndonesia already has three small research reactors located in Serpong, Yogyakarta and Bandung, operated by its National Nuclear Energy Agency.

An agency spokesman, Deddy Harsono, said the Government planned to build two full-size nuclear power plants with a capacity of 600 megawatts by 2016.

One would be in the central Java city of Jepara, while the other would be on Madura island near east Java.
Mr Sriwidjaja called on developed countries to help Jakarta develop its nuclear energy program.

Australia - a major exporter of uranium - has previously expressed reservations about the idea.

Green activists warned of terrorist attacks and said construction safeguards would be compromised by Indonesia's endemic corruption problem.

"We are worried about sabotage," Mutmainah, an anti-nuclear activist, told AAP.

"When it's in irresponsible hands what would happen?"

Indonesia is one of the world's most earthquake prone and volcanically active nations - a fact tragically highlighted by the massive magnitude 9 quake and tsunami which devastated Aceh on Boxing Day, she said.

"We know the technology will not be safe and we won't master it," Mutmainah said.

Hening Parlan, a nuclear expert formerly with the Indonesian Environment Forum, said Indonesia had other energy options, including some of the world's largest natural gas reserves.

"Why not maximise them instead of using nuclear as an alternative?" she said.

Mr Sriwidjaja said Indonesia - a signatory to the nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty signatory and the IAEA's Additional Protocol permitting more intrusive, short-notice inspections - was aware of the threat of terrorists aiming to attack atomic facilities or acquire nuclear material.

"Indonesia has taken the necessary measures to minimise any possible threat to its own nuclear facilities (and) has also improved and strengthened the physical protection of the existing nuclear facilities in accordance with international standard requirements," he said.

The proposal would revive an earlier reactor plan put forward by former president and technocrat BJ Habibie, who fought for Indonesia to become a technology hub.

Asia's economic crisis, the 1998 downfall of the dictator Suharto and Mr Habibie's departure from power a year later ended that vision.

Victor Shum, a senior analyst with energy consultancy, Purvin and Gertz in Singapore, said he was surprised by the plan.

"Indonesia is an oil and gas rich country that still belongs to OPEC, so nuclear energy would not seem to be the most obvious or acceptable option," he said.

"The real problem is that over the last few years Indonesia has become a net oil importer, not because of the lack of resources, but because they have not spent money on developing their oil and gas reserves due to political and economic instability.

Mr Shum said Indonesia needed fresh international investment to revive its ailing oil and gas industry, rather than going nuclear.

"Hopefully the new government of (president) Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono can bring this," he said.
AAP

Yamauchi

March 23rd, 2005, 10:38 PM

I wish I could get excited, but it doesn't make sense to me considering that Indonesia has the potential to produce much cleaner and safer geothermal and hydro power. The generation potential for both of these types combined is 95,000 megawatts (yes, this accurate) according to the World Bank. With the likely $3 billion or so they will be investing in nuclear power, they could easily generate the planned 600 megawatts with geothermal power.

Alvin

March 23rd, 2005, 11:16 PM

how much investment is needed to realise our geothermal power potential??

Alvin

March 31st, 2005, 01:18 PM

Indonesia Enjoys Sharp Surge in 2004 Silk Exports

JAKARTA, March 31 Asia Pulse - Indonesia recorded a more than ten fold increase in its 2004 silk exports to US$9.469 million from US$812,900 in 2003.
The increase was partly attributable to sales to Nigeria as a new buyer of Indonesian silk, the Central Board of Statistics (BPS) said.

Exports to Nigeria alone were valued at US$7.4 million in 2004, the agency said.

Silk exports from Indonesia are dominated by woven silk fabric.

Sharp increases were also recorded in the country's exports of non silk woven fabric up by 63.36 per cent, textile fiber by 59.75 per cent and woolen cloth and animal feather by 45.8 per cent.

Altogether the country's exports of textiles and textile products rose to US$7.59 billion in 2004 from US$7.25 billion in 2003.

Alvin

April 5th, 2005, 05:30 AM

Coal boosts RI non-oil, gas exports
The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

The robust demand for coal in the global market is one of the main driver's behind a 79.53 percent jump in the nation's first two-month non-oil and gas exports, a Central Statistics Agency (BPS) official said.

As stated in the latest BPS report, non-oil and gas exports rose in 2004 to US$9.95 billion as compared to $7.61 billion posted in the corresponding period last year.

Overall, the mining sector saw its exports rise by 142 percent to $1.08 billion in the January-February period from $444.4 million in the same period last year, said BPS exports statistic subdirectorate head Dantes Simbolon on Monday.

"The main driver in the mining sector was coal. As oil prices soared to above $50 per barrel, countries were seeking cheaper alternative energy sources. They then turned to coal," Dantes said.

Coal exports almost doubled from $357.5 million in January-February last year to $711 million this year.

The increasing demand for coal started last year and it would very likely continue this year, Dantes added.

"Although it might be too soon to predict at this time of year, the first two months exports show promising prospects for coal, along with other mining products," he said.

Other than coal, exports of ores, slag and ash also showed an impressive performance to reach $374.8 million in the first two months of the year or about triple last year's $88 million in the same period.

Indonesia exported 105.63 million tons of coal worth $2.75 billion last year compared to the previous year's 89.02 million tons worth $1.98 billion.

RI top coal export markets in 2004*

Countries Net weight Value

(million tons) (US$ million)

Japan 20,072 590.85
South Korea 10,441 253.02
Taiwan 15,525 443.61
Hong Kong 6,066 151.27
India 7,378 150.02
Malaysia 5,161 135.67

Note: Only exports on bituminous coal
Source: Central Statistics Agency

macgyver

April 5th, 2005, 10:44 AM

do we have it already? or I read wrong

Maybe They refer to the one in SERPONG and in BANDUNG ......

I could be wrong though ...

macgyver

April 5th, 2005, 10:47 AM

Release: ChevronTexaco announces agreement to acquire Unocal

Monday, April 04, 2005 - 08:17PM GMT+7

- Stock and cash transaction valued at $18 billion
- Acquisition extends ChevronTexaco's strategic positions in core areas
- ChevronTexaco production and proved reserves expected to increase by more than 15 percent

SAN RAMON, Calif., April 4, 2005 -- ChevronTexaco Corporation (NYSE: CVX) and Unocal Corporation (NYSE: UCL) announced today that ChevronTexaco would acquire Unocal in a stock and cash transaction valued at approximately $18 billion, including net debt. The acquisition, which is subject to approvals by Unocal shareholders and certain regulatory agencies, will significantly enhance ChevronTexaco's position as a leading global energy provider.

"Unocal is a unique independent with supermajor assets that are an excellent fit with our existing portfolio and our long-term strategies -- to grow profitably in core upstream areas, build new legacy positions and commercialize our large undeveloped natural gas resource base," ChevronTexaco Chairman and CEO Dave O'Reilly said. "It is an attractive transaction that provides value in both the near- and long-term."

"Over the past several years Unocal has been highly successful in building a portfolio of major international and deepwater assets and prospects," said Charles R. Williamson, Unocal Chairman and Chief Executive Officer. "The combination with ChevronTexaco will provide the financial and technical resources to maximize the potential of these assets and prospects."

ChevronTexaco expects oil-equivalent production from the combined portfolios during 2006 to average about 3 million barrels per day. Unocal's 1.75 billion barrels of oil-equivalent proved reserves would increase ChevronTexaco's reserve base as of the end of 2004 by about 15 percent. The resultant weighting of natural gas reserves would increase by about 5 percentage points to roughly one-third of the oil-equivalent total. ChevronTexaco expects the transaction to be accretive to ChevronTexaco's prospective production growth rate.

Strong Strategic Fit
ChevronTexaco indicated the Unocal assets would provide an enhanced presence in several of the company's core areas of operations, including:

· Asia Pacific -- The combination of the two companies will place ChevronTexaco in the top tier of natural gas producers and marketers in this expanding and strategically important region. ChevronTexaco would become the top oil and gas producer in Thailand. In Indonesia, extensive oil and gas producing operations offshore in both the shelf and deepwater areas will augment ChevronTexaco's significant oil production, principally onshore. Unocal also markets through the Bontang LNG plant in Indonesia, complementing ChevronTexaco's current LNG production in Australia, as well as ChevronTexaco's planned development of natural gas fields in the greater Gorgon area of Australia and the shipment of LNG to markets in Asia and North America.

· Gulf of Mexico -- The acquisition will enhance ChevronTexaco's position in the Gulf of Mexico, where it is already a leading participant on the shelf and in deepwater opportunities such as Tahiti, Jack, Blind Faith and Great White. This, when combined with Unocal's position on the shelf, its interests in Mad Dog, St. Malo, K2 and Puma in the deep water, and its portfolio of exploration acreage, will further strengthen ChevronTexaco's Gulf of Mexico profile.

· Caspian Region -- The acquisition will give ChevronTexaco the second-largest interest in the Azerbaijan International Operating Company (AIOC) oil producing operations, broadening its status as a leading oil company in the Caspian region. With AIOC comes a share in the Baku-Tbilsi-Ceyhan (BTC) export pipeline, further expanding ChevronTexaco's position in Caspian oil export infrastructure.

Synergy Opportunities
O'Reilly said the company would target synergies in a number of operations and corporate functions by rationalizing duplicate activities and highgrading investment programs. The integration process will focus on combining the strengths of the two companies into a unified, high-performing enterprise. For example, ChevronTexaco's proven expertise in project execution, particularly in the deep water, will help leverage the full value of Unocal's major developments. There will also be opportunities to add value by adopting Unocal's operating best practices in ChevronTexaco.

ChevronTexaco expects disposition of assets following the close of the transaction to result in proceeds of more than $2 billion. Annual savings from operational synergies and reduced corporate expenses are estimated by ChevronTexaco at more than $325 million before tax.

Terms of the Acquisition
The acquisition consideration is structured as 75 percent stock and 25 percent cash, providing an overall value of approximately $62 per share based on the closing price of ChevronTexaco stock on April 1. Unocal shareholders may elect to receive either 1.03 shares of ChevronTexaco stock or $65 in cash for each share of Unocal stock; however, both of these elections will be subject to proration. In the aggregate, ChevronTexaco will issue approximately 210 million shares of ChevronTexaco stock and pay approximately $4.4 billion in cash. ChevronTexaco will also assume estimated net debt of $1.6 billion.

Effects on Future Financial Results
ChevronTexaco estimates the acquisition would be accretive on a cash flow per-share basis. Further, it will be broadly neutral to earnings per share after taking into account synergies and significant additional share repurchases. ChevronTexaco indicated plans for the repurchases, subject to board approval and consistent with liquidity, legal requirements, and maintaining the company's AA credit rating. Over the past year, ChevronTexaco repurchased $2.8 billion of its common shares, as part of a $5 billion repurchase program.

Integration Timetable
Following regulatory approval, the full integration of the two companies is expected to be completed in six months.

"We have very strong integration capabilities following the merger of Chevron and Texaco and intend to combine operations and achieve synergies quickly and efficiently," O'Reilly said. "At the same time, we remain strongly focused on enhancing our existing base business and increasing global production through development of our strong queue of capital projects.

"ChevronTexaco and Unocal share common roots in the oil fields of California and we believe we have highly compatible business cultures and values. A very attractive element of this combination is the opportunity to integrate two highly capable groups of employees to continue to drive world-class performance," O'Reilly said.

Williamson said, "In our discussions with ChevronTexaco it is clear that we share similar values and have comparable corporate cultures. This merger will be a good fit."

O'Reilly concluded by saying, "The immediate benefits of this combination are tangible and the longer-term value is even more compelling. We believe it will significantly enhance our company's position as a leading competitor and the partner-of-choice in the global energy industry."

Lehman Brothers is acting as financial advisor to ChevronTexaco Corporation. Pillsbury Winthrop Shaw Pittman LLP is acting as legal advisor. Morgan Stanley & Co. Inc. is acting as financial advisor to Unocal Corporation. Wachtell Lipton Rosen and Katz is acting a legal advisor to Unocal. (end of release)

SOURCE ChevronTexaco Corp.
CONTACT: Don Campbell of ChevronTexaco, +1-925-842-2589

Alvin

April 6th, 2005, 07:29 AM

Mexico, Indonesia Spurn Oil Companies as Global Oil Prices Soar

April 6 (Bloomberg) -- Mexico and Indonesia face declining oil production as government policies discourage investment by companies such as Exxon Mobil Corp. and ChevronTexaco Corp., limiting global supply and pushing prices to records.

Output from Mexico's Cantarell field, one of the world's largest, may start to fall this year because of restrictions keeping out needed technology and funding, said Luis Ramirez, chief executive of state-owned Petroleos Mexicanos. Indonesia, where Exxon Mobil has delayed drilling as the government insists on a bigger stake for state-owned PT Pertamina, may import more than it exports this year after a two-decade production slide.

Policies that discourage foreign investment, whether in Iran, Bolivia, Mexico or Indonesia, force companies to tap more expensive sources, such as oil sands in Canada. Rising costs, and surging demand, were cited by Goldman, Sachs & Co. analysts last week among reasons oil could reach $105 a barrel. Crude oil touched a record $58.28 a barrel in New York this week.

``There's not a shortage of oil globally,'' said Adam Sieminski, a global oil strategist with Deutsche Bank AG in London. ``There are access issues, some of which are a result of the political feelings in the countries that have those resources.''

Exxon Mobil, the world's largest publicly traded oil company, assumes there will be improvement in the environment for investment in countries with ample resources, said Scott Nauman, who oversees the company's forecasting. The changes will make it possible for oil production worldwide to rise by almost 50 percent to 120 million barrels per day by 2030.

In Venezuela, where President Hugo Chavez's government last year raised royalties, ChevronTexaco and Spain's Repsol YPF agreed to invest $6 billion to develop a new oilfield. Venezuela is the world's fifth-largest oil exporter.

Mexican Oil Law

Both Indonesia and Mexico ``still have significant resources to be developed,'' Naumann said in an interview last week at the company's headquarters in Irving, Texas. ``If you take the long view, these things tend to work themselves out.''

In Mexico, the constitution prohibits foreign companies from owning the oil they produce. That makes it impossible for companies to use the production-sharing contracts they rely on in most other countries. Such contracts typically allow a company to sell a certain portion of the oil to recover costs plus an agreed- upon profit.

Efforts to change Mexico's laws have been stymied. Opposition in Congress led President Vicente Fox to scale back plans to open the oil industry to more foreign investment. Legislators forced Fox, a member of the National Action Party, to withdraw a plan in 2001 to put Mexican businessmen, including billionaire Carlos Slim and Cemex SA Chief Executive Officer Lorenzo Zambrano, on Pemex's board.

`Give Away'

``Why are you going to give away what's yours,'' Sen. Manuel Bartlett said last week in an interview at his office in Mexico City. ``It's not in Mexico's benefit.''

Bartlett, 69, is a member of the Institutional Revolutionary Party, Mexico's largest political party. He led a group of senators that sued Repsol over contracts Pemex awarded to drill natural gas in northern Mexico in 2003.

Views similar to Bartlett's may hold sway in countries such as Bolivia and Iran.

In Bolivia, plans to allow foreign companies to exploit the country's natural gas resources sparked civil unrest that toppled President Gonzalo Sanchez de Lozada a year and a half ago. The Bolivian legislature now is contemplating a law to raise taxes to 50 percent from 18 percent on oil and gas production.

Bolivia may have 53 trillion cubic feet of gas, according to estimates from the government, which would be the second-largest gas reserves in South America after Venezuela.

``Iran allows companies to come in, but the contract structure is so bad that the companies can't make any money,'' according to Deutsche Bank's Sieminski.

Proved Reserves

Mexico's proved oil reserves dwindled to 16 billion barrels, or 1.4 percent of the worldwide total, as of 2003, according to data from London-based BP Plc, Europe's largest oil company. Proved reserves are resources established through drilling or other tests that can be produced economically.

Pemex's reserves have been declining for more than two decades, and last year the company replaced just 15 percent of what it pumped. The company adds ``probable'' and ``possible'' oil and gas to its proved reserves to estimate that the equivalent of 47 billion barrels of oil could be within reach.

There may be another 54 billion barrels for Mexico to tap in the Gulf of Mexico, Pemex's Ramirez said.

Drilling in the Mexican sector of the Gulf of Mexico is done in an average depth of about 200 feet of water. In the U.S. part, wells in 3,000 feet of water are typical.

``There's good reason to be skeptical that Pemex can maintain production levels,'' said John Padilla, director of IPD Latin America, a Brooklyn, New York, energy consulting firm.

Indonesian Disputes

The Cepu oil field in Indonesia, where Exxon Mobil has delayed drilling a 500-million-barrel deposit for three years, could produce 170,000 barrels a day, according to the company. The project may stall for a fourth year because Pertamina won't extend a project license until it gets a bigger stake.

In another dispute, companies including San Ramon, California-based ChevronTexaco, the second-largest U.S. oil producer, are seeking refunds for about $200 million in value- added tax from the past four years.

ChevronTexaco yesterday agreed to buy Unocal Corp., based in El Segundo, California, for $16.4 billion in stock and cash to increase reserves in Asia, the fastest-growing energy market.

Exploration spending in Indonesia, a member of the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries, dropped to less than $500 million last year, a 23-year low, according to the Indonesian Petroleum Association, which represents ChevronTexaco and other producers. Indonesia's daily oil production was 950,000 barrels a day in March, according data compiled by Bloomberg. In 1977, oil production peaked at 1.64 million barrels a day.

`Not Just Talk'

``We need to see some action, not just talk,'' Wahyudin Yudiana Ardiwinata, chief executive of ChevronTexaco's PT Caltex Pacific Indonesia unit, said in a March 22 interview in Jakarta.

The biggest publicly traded oil companies are turning to Angola, Kazakhstan, Azerbaijan and the Canadian oil sands to invest in production, said James Burkhard, director of global markets at Cambridge Research Energy Associates in Cambridge, Massachusetts.

It may not be enough to offset demand, which last year jumped 3.2 percent, or 2.5 million barrels a day, the highest growth rate since 1978, he said. The International Energy Agency predicts 2.2 percent growth in demand this year.

``If that rate of demand growth is replicated in the coming years,'' Burkhard said, ``we're going to have a tight market for years to come.''

To contact the reporter on this story:
Thomas Black in Mexico City at tblack@bloomberg.net;
Grace Nirang in Jakarta gnirang@bloomberg.net.

To contact the editor responsible for this story:
Robert Dieterich at rdieterich@bloomberg.net.
Last Updated: April 5, 2005 16:31 EDT

Alvin

April 7th, 2005, 03:07 PM

Indonesia vows to boost oil output

World News, JAKARTA : The Indonesian government has reiterated its pledge to boost the nation's oil output by 300,000 barrels per day by 2009 to meet increasing domestic demand.

Minister of Energy and Mineral Resources Purnomo Yusgiantoro said the efforts to increase production would include optimizing the exploitation of aging oil fields and enhancing oil production in marginal fields through the use of advanced technology, The Jakarta Post reported.

The survey of existing oil fields showed the rate of natural depletion with no additional work is around 10 percent to 15 percent annually.

"Seventy percent of today's production comes from mature oil fields, of which around 55 percent are located in Central Sumatra," the minister noted.

"To increase the supply of oil, we need to advance and innovate in the technology field to extend the oil reserves and to discover new oil sources in remote areas and deep seas," he added, noting domestic oil demand was increasing by about 7 percent every year.

Purnomo indicated his ministry and BP Migas have been preparing two packages of incentives aimed at encouraging investments in oil prospecting and production in the country.

David-80

April 12th, 2005, 01:01 PM

Way to go PT PAL! and good job to government for issuing such regulation

Indonesian Shipping Line Apol to Order 8 Locally-Built Vessels

JAKARTA, April 12 Asia Pulse - PT Arpeni Pratama Ocean Lines (APOL) will soon place order for eight cargo ships from a local shipbuilding company, its president Oentoro Surya said.
Surya said the management's plan was prompted by the recent decision to empower domestic shipping industry through the adoption of the cabotage principle banning foreign ships from carrying domestic cargoes.

He said his company, now operating 31 ships including 5 general cargo ships, 4 bulk ships, 4 tankers, and other vessels, is set to expand its capacity in domestic cargo transport and export import transport.

The new presidential decision also regulates that transport of imports by the government will be handled by ships flying the Indonesian flag.

(ANTARA)

Yamauchi

April 15th, 2005, 05:24 AM

Indonesia Forecast to Become World's Biggest Coal Exporter

PALEMBANG, April 15 Asia Pulse - Indonesia is projected to overtake Australia as the world's biggest coal exporter in 2005, a company executive has said.

Global coal demand is expected to grow by 3.8 per cent in 2005 and 2.2 per cent in 2006, the president director of coal mining company PT Batubara Bukit Asam, Ismet Harmaini, said recently.

In Asia, the coal demand is projected to grow by 5.3 per cent in 2005 and 4 per cent in 2006, he said.

The high coal demand in Asia would come from India and China, he said.

He said Indonesia's total coal deposits are estimated at 50.1 billion tons, of which 43.5 per cent is found in Sumatra, and the rest in Kalimantan, Sulawesi and Papua.

Prof. H. Machmud Hasjim of Sriwijaya University however put the figure at 57.85 billion tons, and 27.39 billion tons or 47.35 per cent of them are found in Sumatra.

Alvin

April 16th, 2005, 08:32 AM

Govt goes ahead with nuclear plant plan
Leony Aurora, The Jakarta Post/Jakarta

Power in the country, it seems, is going nuclear again.

Seeking solutions to the steady increase of energy demand in the country amid declining oil output, the government has decided to go ahead with plans to construct nuclear power plants, with the first one to begin construction in 2010.

Speaking in the launch of the blueprint on the development of country's energy industry, the National Atomic Energy Agency (Batan) chief Soedyartomo Soentono said that the first 1,000-megawatt (MW) nuclear power plant was expected to be delivered in 2016.

Three more plants of similar capacity, which will be built in Muria in Central Java, will follow in 2017, 2023, and 2024, respectively, he said on Friday.

"Nuclear plants can produce power at about 3.5 U.S. cents per kilowatt-hour (kwh), if their capacity is above 600 MW each," Soentono said.

State power distributor Perusahaan Listrik Negara (PLN) at present spends about 6 U.S. cents to produce 1 kwh of electricity using oil.

On the nuclear road map, the government aims to reduce the usage of oil to produce energy, which stands currently at up to 55 percent, to between 10 percent and 15 percent by 2020.

Gas usage is targeted to rise from 31 percent this year to 39 percent in 2020 and coal from 11 percent to 38 percent. New and renewable sources are expected to rise from 0.2 percent currently to 4 percent in 2020.

The question of security has always caused great debate when considering plans to build power plants in the country.

The plan's detractors point to country's less-than-stellar safety standards and the Chernobyl power station meltdown in the Ukraine in 1986 where radiation poisoning killed 30 people at the time and continues to kill or deform hundreds of others.

Soentono said the technology had advanced greatly since Chernobyl and the project would be conducted with utmost care. "We are not building another Chernobyl," he said.

"Failure is not tolerated in nuclear plants. If the plant in Indonesia fails, plans to build plants all over the world may be dropped," he said.

If the history of nuclear power in this country is any indication, however, the nuclear naysayers should not lose any sleep. For more than 40 years, successive governments have talked up building nuclear power plants but none have ever been constructed.

Soentono said Indonesia had been conducting nuclear studies since the mid-1960s. A study to build a power plant was completed in 1986, but it did not materialize. Another one was updated in 1996, but was halted when the monetary crisis hit.

"We did another study using post-crisis data. It was completed in 2002," said Soentono.

To be able to start construction in 2010, the government has to get all required site permits by 2006. A tender to build the planned power plant is expected to commence in 2008.

Alvin

April 19th, 2005, 06:06 AM

Susilo wants Asia, Africa to lead energy revolution

Rendi A. Witular and Leony Aurora, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

Amid the decline in conventional energy resources and rising global pollution, President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono suggested on Monday that nations from Asia and Africa initiate the use of renewable energy resources.

Speaking to participants at the Asian-African Symposium on Renewable Energy, Susilo said there was a need to form a joint community between countries in Asia and Africa to support the use and development of renewable energy.

The symposium, along with the Regional Congress and Exhibition on Renewable Energy, are being held in conjunction with the upcoming Asian-African Summit scheduled to commence on April 22.

"The community is expected to accelerate the use of renewable energy for nations in Asia and Africa. Should this be a success, millions of poor people will have the ability to access such energy at an affordable cost," said Susilo.

Susilo hoped the upcoming Asian-African Summit would result in cooperation among participating countries to seriously develop the use of renewable energy, as well as reducing dependency on conventional energy sources -- such as oil, gas and coal.

"Asian-African countries should not lag behind nations in other continents. I do hope that our solidarity will strengthen cooperation in the sector of energy, and together we can alleviate poverty by providing low-cost energy resources," he said.

Renewable energy sources that are planned to be developed by Asian-African nations include solar, hydro, geothermal, wind, and vegetable oil and animal fat.

"As resources of conventional energy are declining, more and more nations are involved in disputes over the possession of resource-rich areas located along their borders.

"This is the other risk of being heavily dependent on conventional energy," said Susilo.

Meanwhile, Minister of Energy and Mineral Resources Purnomo Yusgiantoro said the use of renewable energy in Indonesia would account at least 5 percent of total energy resources by 2020, with most being in the form of geothermal and solar power.

"Indonesia is now preparing a blueprint for the use of renewable energy until 2020. We expect to use 5 percent of our energy supply from renewable sources and gradually increase such use in following years," he said.

According to Purnomo, in terms of geothermal energy, Indonesia's accounts for about 40 percent of the world's potential, as the country is located on the so called "ring of fire".

However, he said, there were still several barriers to the development of renewable energy here in Indonesia, such as high investment costs, limited incentives and funding and lack of knowledge.

Subsidized domestic fuel prices are also impede the use and development of renewable energy, as it is currently more economically to use diesel fuel to produce energy than to use renewable energy.

Purnomo hoped that new technologies and inventions could lead to the construction of more power plants using renewable energy in remote areas.

macgyver

April 20th, 2005, 09:01 AM

17/4/2005: Suzuki announces growth plans in Indonesia
Print version
Send to a friend!
Indomobil Suzuki, the Japanese automakers Indonesian arm, will invest 1.7 trillion rupiah (USD180 million) to expand its production capacity to 200,000 vehicles. Motorcycle production will also be stepped up.

The company’s factory in Tambun, Bekasi, currently has an annual capacity to of 845,000 motorcycles and 82,000 four-wheelers. Capacity will grow this year to 1.2 million and 120,000 units respectively.

Indonesia is the production base for the Suzuki APV, launched last September. The vehicle will eventually be sold right across Southeast Asia. In Malaysia, it will be brought in as a CBU import by DRB-Hicom subsidiary Suzuki Malaysia Automobile, along with Swift and Grand Vitara, under an agreement signed at the end of March.

Suzuki Malaysia says it will examine the idea of CKD assembly in Malaysia but DRB-Hicom appears to have decided that current duty structure legislate against local assembly, though it says it is looking out for better terms for CKD operations when the so-called National Automotive Policy is finally published.

Alvin

April 21st, 2005, 04:31 AM

INDONESIA PRESS:Amerada Hess To Invest $500M In East Java

Thursday April 21, 2005, 10:40 am

DJ INDONESIA PRESS:Amerada Hess To Invest $500M In East Java

JAKARTA (Dow Jones)--U.S. energy company Amerada Hess Corp. (AHC) plans to invest $500 million during the next two or three years to develop its offshore gas and oil concession in Pangkah, East Java, the Jakarta Post reports.

"Our first commitment is to invest some $500 million to develop the Pangkah project, which is scheduled to be completed in 2007," Chief Executive Officer John B. Hess said in the report.

After completion of the project, Hess said Amerada estimates its oil and gas production in Indonesia will rise to 25,000 barrels/day from the current 5,000 b/d, the report says.

Amerada also plans to develop other gas and oil concessions with state-run oil and gas producer PT Pertamina (PTM.YY) in Jambi Merang in South Sumatra and Makassar Strait, the daily says.

Newspaper web site: http://www.bisnis.com

Alvin

April 21st, 2005, 03:32 PM

Thursday April 21, 7:04 PM
Indonesia car sales rise 34 pct in March yr/yr

JAKARTA, April 21 (Reuters) - Car sales in Indonesia rose 34 percent in March compared to the same period a year ago, data from Indonesia's largest automotive distributor showed on Thursday.
PT Astra International Tbk said 52,788 cars were sold by all distributors in March, bringing total sales for the first quarter of 2005 to 143,986.

The company, 47 percent owned by Singapore's Jardine Cycle & Carriage Ltd , accounted for 45 percent of total car sales in Indonesia last year.

The company is the distributor for various car brands including Toyota, Daihatsu, Peugeot, BMW, Isuzu and Honda Motorcycle.

Monthly sales of cars :

March 2005 Feb 2005 March 2004
Toyota 16,463 13,899 12,698
Mitsubishi 10,057 8,427 7,918
Suzuki 9,307 7,451 6,500
Honda 4,100 4,403 3,422
Others 12,861 11,538 8,750
Total 52,788 45,718 39,288

Alvin

April 27th, 2005, 11:13 AM

MP Evans Grp Sells Malaysia Estate, Invests In Indonesia

Wednesday April 27, 2005, 4:58 pm

DJ MP Evans Grp Sells Malaysia Estate, Invests In Indonesia

Edited Press Release

LONDON (Dow Jones)--MP Evans Group PLC said Wednesday it will sale of a 660-hectare Malaysian estate for GBP4.3 million and an Investment in a 12,000-hectare Indonesian oil palm project.

The company said that the transactions represent the first stage of the implementation of the board's new strategy adopted since the Company's recent merger with Bertam Holdings PLC and Lendu Holdings PLC.

The company said: "As described in the documents relating to the merger, the new strategy is to divest the Group's relatively low-earning Malaysian plantations and reinvest the proceeds in the higher-earning Indonesian palm-oil and Australian beef-cattle sectors. With regard, specifically, to Indonesia, the aim is to acquire 50,000 hectares of land which is suitable for oil-palm development, in addition to the Group's existing plantations.

"Sale of Sungei Reyla Estate In line with this strategy, and as part of the means of financing the expansionary programme in Indonesia, we are pleased to announce the sale of the first of the Malaysian plantations, the 660-hectare Sungei Reyla Estate, for a total selling price of RM31.4 million, approximately GBP4.3 million.

"This sale is subject to 5% Malaysian Real Property Gains Tax and the related tax charge is expected to be approximately RM1.4 million (approximately GBP0.19 million). The sale is also conditional upon the approval of the Malaysian Foreign Investment Committee and the Estates Land Board. These permissions are expected to be received within six to nine months."

The company also said Wednesday that it has signed agreements relating to the commencement of a project in the northern part of Bangka Island, which lies off the south east coast of Sumatra, Indonesia.

The project consists of the acquisition and development of approximately 12,000 hectares which will be planted with oil palms and nearby there will be a smallholders' cooperative comprising up to a further 5,000 hectacres. A crude palm oil mill will be constructed to process the fruit from both the project and the smallholders' land. The site is well placed, being near a port from which palm oil can be shipped, and is in an area with suitable rainfall and soil conditions. The project will be managed from within the Group by a Malaysian general manager.

The investment in the project will be routed through an Indonesian company, PT Gunung Pelawan Lestari ("GPL"), which will be owned as to 90% by the Group and 10% by the Indonesian partner, Mr Karli Boenjamin, who is an eminent Indonesian businessman with extensive experience of oil palm developments on the island.

With regard to the financing of GPL, it is anticipated that the total funding requirement will be in the region of US$45 million, with the peak requirement arising in 2009. It is intended that this will be provided by a combination of funds from within the M. P. Evans Group PLC and external loans. The plan is to develop the project at the rate of approximately 4,000 hectares per annum and it will be some six years from now before all of the plantings are considered mature by which time earnings from the first plantings should have commenced. The implementation of the project is conditional upon the necessary local approvals but the board is confident that there should not be any difficulty in obtaining these.

2004 results announcement The preliminary results for 2004 are expected to be announced on 9 May 2005. The figures relate to the results, cash flows and net assets of the Rowe Evans Investments PLC Group as it was at Dec. 31, 2004 - in other words, prior to the merger with Bertam and Lendu. The merger took place on Feb. 2, 2005 when the Company changed its name to M. P. Evans Group PLC and the accounts of the enlarged group will only reflect the merger after that date.

macgyver

April 28th, 2005, 10:58 AM

Motor Indonesia Siap Bersaing dengan Motor Jepang
Reporter: Arin Widiyanti

detikcom - Karawang, Sepeda motor buatan Indonesia yang memiliki komponen 70 persen lokal dan 100 persen pembuatnya bangsa Indonesia siap bersaing di pasar domestik dengan motor buatan Jepang.

Demikian dikatakan Komisaris Utama PT Semesta Citra Motorindo Rini MS Suwandi saat peluncuran produksi motor Kanzen Taurus di Pabrik Kanzen Jalan Raya Karawang Timur, Jawa Barat, Kamis (28/4/2005). Motor ini rencananya akan dilemparkan ke pasar pada bulan Juni 2005.

"Kami optimis bersaing karena telah mengadakan evaluasi pasar secara berkala. Dan kami targetkan penjualan Kanzen sebanyak 60 ribu unit tahun ini," kata Rini.

Menurut Rini, jumlah 60 ribu unit merupakan 2 kali lipat dari angka penjualan tahun lalu. "Saya bangga Kanzen adalah satu-satunya produk Indonesia yang diterima oleh asosiasi industri sepeda motor Indonesia," katanya.

Rini mengatakan, orientasi masyarakat Indonesia saat ini adalah bagaimana dapat menjual motor kembali. "Orang Indonesia berorientasi bagaimana menjual motor second hand makanya kami tingkatkan layanan purna jual," katanya.

Rini bercerita, pada awal Kanzen diluncurkan banyak pihak yang tidak begitu suka terhadap motor buatan Indonesia, sehingga banyak yang tidak mau memasok spare partnya. Hal ini, lanjut Rini, justru menjadi cambuk visi Kanzen menjadi pemain keempat terbesar di pasar motor Indonesia.

"Kami telah mematenkan desain Kanzen karena kami berencana akan mengekspor ke Asia. Baru tahun kami berani memasarkan di Jabotabek, karena warga Jabotabek lebih suka dengan motor buatan Jepang," katanya. Makanya, kata Rini, konsentrasi awal pemasaran Kanzen dilakukan di Sumatera.(mar)Motor Indonesia Siap Bersaing dengan Motor Jepang
Reporter: Arin Widiyanti

detikcom - Karawang, Sepeda motor buatan Indonesia yang memiliki komponen 70 persen lokal dan 100 persen pembuatnya bangsa Indonesia siap bersaing di pasar domestik dengan motor buatan Jepang.

Demikian dikatakan Komisaris Utama PT Semesta Citra Motorindo Rini MS Suwandi saat peluncuran produksi motor Kanzen Taurus di Pabrik Kanzen Jalan Raya Karawang Timur, Jawa Barat, Kamis (28/4/2005). Motor ini rencananya akan dilemparkan ke pasar pada bulan Juni 2005.

"Kami optimis bersaing karena telah mengadakan evaluasi pasar secara berkala. Dan kami targetkan penjualan Kanzen sebanyak 60 ribu unit tahun ini," kata Rini.

Menurut Rini, jumlah 60 ribu unit merupakan 2 kali lipat dari angka penjualan tahun lalu. "Saya bangga Kanzen adalah satu-satunya produk Indonesia yang diterima oleh asosiasi industri sepeda motor Indonesia," katanya.

Rini mengatakan, orientasi masyarakat Indonesia saat ini adalah bagaimana dapat menjual motor kembali. "Orang Indonesia berorientasi bagaimana menjual motor second hand makanya kami tingkatkan layanan purna jual," katanya.

Rini bercerita, pada awal Kanzen diluncurkan banyak pihak yang tidak begitu suka terhadap motor buatan Indonesia, sehingga banyak yang tidak mau memasok spare partnya. Hal ini, lanjut Rini, justru menjadi cambuk visi Kanzen menjadi pemain keempat terbesar di pasar motor Indonesia.

"Kami telah mematenkan desain Kanzen karena kami berencana akan mengekspor ke Asia. Baru tahun kami berani memasarkan di Jabotabek, karena warga Jabotabek lebih suka dengan motor buatan Jepang," katanya. Makanya, kata Rini, konsentrasi awal pemasaran Kanzen dilakukan di Sumatera.(mar)

Indonesia-made motorcycle " Kanzen" .... ready to compete with Japan-made .....Currently in 4th position after ...honda, suzuki and yamaha ??

macgyver

April 28th, 2005, 11:30 AM

http://www.sinarharapan.co.id/feature/otomotif/2002/081/kanzen.jpg
http://www.geocities.jp/jjmarket2005jp/jakarta_motor_show/kanzen_1.JPG
http://www.geocities.jp/jjmarket2005jp/jakarta_motor_show/kanzen_2.JPG
http://www.sinarharapan.co.id/ceo/2004/0830/ceo2.jpg http://www.kreditmotor.com/images/km100.gif
http://www.sinarharapan.co.id/feature/otomotif/2004/0909/oto02.jpg
http://www.kreditmotor.com/images/kp100.gif http://www.kreditmotor.com/images/kp125.gif

David-80

April 28th, 2005, 03:14 PM

That 150cc class and the last picture are really looks like or imitation of Honda tiger and GL pro!

cheers

Alvin

April 28th, 2005, 03:16 PM

yeah, they look exactly the same...the old Hondas.....

tata

April 28th, 2005, 03:17 PM

imitation of Honda tiger

From newspaper I learnt that they stop producing this one.

Alvin

May 6th, 2005, 07:26 AM

Govt to build phone lines worth Rp 400b from USO
Yuli Tri Suwarni, The Jakarta Post, Bandung

With about 40,000 villages nationwide still without access to telecommunication, the government is aiming to build more telephone lines in remote areas using the Rp 400 billion (US$41.91 million) universal service obligation (USO) fund.

State Minister of Communications and Information Sofyan A. Djalil said on the sidelines of the e-Indonesia Initiatives (eII) 2005 national conference on information and communications technology at the Bandung Institute of Technology earlier this week that his ministry had targeted all villages would have telecommunication access within the next 10 years.

"Assuming that telecommunication firms' gross revenue this year reaches Rp 50 trillion, we will have Rp 400 billion for the provision of the phone lines," he said.

The government launched the USO program in 2003, planning to install telephone lines in 43,000 villages using various types of technology, such as satellite, radio, cellular and Internet protocol, depending on the local geography.

The USO is a two-phase program: In phase one, running from 2003 to 2010, the government must provide each village with at least one fixed line; in phase two, it must develop more supporting facilities.

To finance those projects, the government obliged telecommunication operators to set aside 0.75 percent of their annual revenue toward the program.

President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono -- in his video-conference opening speech broadcast to 11 country members of the School of the Internet: Bangladesh, Japan, Laos, Malaysia, Mongolia, Myanmar, Nepal, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam -- said, "Information technology is needed by the people. ICT (information communication technology) can also serve as a tool to curb corruption, as I can check the dividends of state enterprises or the state revenue from taxes."

"But the ICT is currently centered in urban areas. To speed up access to telecommunication in rural areas, the government has to provide the infrastructure," he added.

The President said the USO program would also be developed to provide telephone lines for all citizens.

Sofyan said the government would evaluate the use of satellite telephones in villages because they are costly.

"We are studying (the possibility of) providing cheaper communication technology, which would cost Rp 200 million per set of equipment. With more affordable prices, we could provide the public with more devices," he said.

David-80

May 10th, 2005, 04:03 PM

Oleo-Chemical Plant Worth US$300 MLN Slated for Sumatra

JAKARTA, May 10 Asia Pulse - A group of foreign companies will invest up to US$300 million to build an oleo-chemical factory in Sumatra this year.
Chairman of the Association of Oleo-Chemical Producers Kris Hadisubroto said he could not yet disclose the name of the consortium.

Part of the production of the factory will be exported, Kris said, adding demand for oleo-chemical products is growing in the world, especially from the detergent industry.

He said this year Indonesia will increase production of oleo-chemicals by 20 per cent-30 per cent to 600,000 tons, boosted by growing exports to China, which has cut the import duty on Indonesian oleo-chemicals from 16 per cent to 5 per cent.

Earlier, a senior official of the agriculture minister said Indonesia has only a production capacity of 342,000 tons of fatty acid, one of oleo-chemical products, as against the world market of 7 million tons a year.

(ANTARA)

macgyver

May 12th, 2005, 05:38 AM

PT PAL Full Booked Hingga 2008
Arin Widiyanti - detikFinance

Jakarta - Jika ada perusahaan yang sudah full booked sampai 2008, itu salah satunya PT PAL Indonesia. Hingga tiga tahun ke depan PT PAL telah menerima pesanan untuk membuat kapal dari pembeli dalam dan luar negeri.

Menurut Presiden Direktur PT PAL Adwin Suryohadiprojo, laris manisnya PT PAL ini berkat adanya Instruksi Presiden (Inpres) Republik Indonesia Nomor 5 Tahun 2005 tentang Pemberdayaan Pelayaran Nasional .

Adwin, yang ditemui wartawan seusai diskusi panel Korbid Hubungan Luar Negeri dan Pertahanan Keamanan di DPP Partai Golkar, Jl. Anggrek Nelly Murni, Slipi, Rabu (11/5/2005), menjelaskan pada awal Juni PT PAL akan mengirimkan satu kapal tanker ke Pertamina dengan bobot mati 30.000 ton.

Saat ini pesanan yang sedang dikerjakan untuk bobot mati 50.000 ton ada tujuh kapal. Di antaranya dua dari Jerman dan dua dari Turki. Untuk bobot mati 18.000 ton antara lain dua dari Italia, ditambah dua kapal Anchor Handling yang merupakan pesanan dari Pertamina Tongkang, empat kapal pesanan Bea Cukai, dan satu kapal pesanan departemen perhubungan.

PT PAL, menurut Adwin, juga siap mendukung industri pertahanan dalam negeri tapi masih bersifat bertahap. Namun pesanan kapal perang dari TNI AL sampai saat ini belum ada. Hal ini karena terbentur dengan pendanaan.

"Kalau pendanaan kapal perang perlu dibahas bersama. Hal ini berbeda dengan pembelian kapal komersial yang tidak terlalu bermasalah karena pembelinya pasti punya uang," kata Adwin.

Saat ini dengan Inpres Pelayanan yang sedang dibenahi baru di pelayaran, lalu akan ke galangannya, dan berlanjut ke supporting industry. Diharapkan di 2005 ini struktur industri pelayaran lebih baik agar bisa lebih kompetitif.(gtp)

http://jkt.detikfinance.com/index.php/detik.read/tahun/2005/bulan/05/tgl/12/time/33632/idnews/359387/idkanal/4

Why didn't they mention any Sigma Corvettes ??? :weirdo:

Alvin

May 12th, 2005, 10:19 AM

INTERVIEW: Indonesia Rubber Exports To Rise 10% In 2005

Thursday May 12, 2005, 3:51 pm

INTERVIEW: Indonesia Rubber Exports To Rise 10% In 2005

By Nitsara Srihanam

Of DOW JONES NEWSWIRES

BANGKOK (Dow Jones)--Indonesia's natural rubber exports in 2005 are forecast to grow at nearly the same rate as last year, thanks to persisting healthy global demand.

"I expect rubber exports in 2005 to increase... (by) around 10%," Suharto Honggokusumo, executive director of the Rubber Association of Indonesia, or Gapkindo, told Dow Jones Newswires in a recent interview in Bangkok.

In 2004, Indonesia exported 1.87 million metric tons of natural rubber, an increase of around 13% from the year before, he said.

Indonesia is the world's second-largest natural rubber producer and exporter after Thailand. It produced 2.07 million tons of rubber in 2004, according to Suharto.

An expected rise in demand from China, although at a slower pace than earlier, will help boost rubber exports by Indonesia, Suharto said.

Rubber imports from Indonesia to China totaled 207,851 tons in 2004, an increase of 53.1% from a year ago, according to data from China's General Administration of Customs.

"China will buy more rubber this year as demand from the automotive industry remains high... exports (by Indonesia to China) will grow by around 20%-25% for the whole year," Suharto said.

China's natural rubber imports totaled 1.28 million tons in 2004, up 6.7% from the previous year, according to customs data. Last year, China also imported 1.09 million tons of synthetic rubber, up 8.8% from a year earlier, the data show.

During January to March this year, China imported 39,018 tons of rubber from Indonesia, up 48.1% from the same period last year. Chinese import of rubber from all origins totaled 342,210 tons during this period.

Gapkindo expects China to import a total of 1.50 million tons of rubber in 2005, Suharto said.

China is one of the world's biggest producers of natural rubber, with output approximately 600,000 tons a year. However, it also imports more than a million tons each year to keep its expanding tire manufacturing industry going.

Natural Rubber Prices Have Room To Rise

Suharto said there is a room for natural rubber prices to rise further, given synthetic rubber prices are markedly higher than the former.

Standard Indonesian Rubber 20 grade, for July delivery, was offered at $1.18 a kilogram Wednesday, while synthetic rubber is priced around $1.75-1.80/kg currently, according to traders.

"It is still a wide gap between natural rubber prices and synthetic rubber prices... there's room for natural rubber prices to go up," he said.

Thai Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra recently said rubber producing countries will try to push rubber prices higher to around 60 baht a kilogram, or around $1.52/kg. That is "possible," Suharto said.

During a meeting of ministers in charge of rubber from Thailand, Indonesia and Malaysia in late April, Thaksin said exporting countries aren't satisfied with current rubber prices, as oil prices and synthetic rubber prices have risen sharply, while natural rubber prices haven't kept pace.

Thailand, Indonesia and Malaysia are the founding members of the International Rubber Consortium Ltd., or IRCo.

"We are expecting prices... to go up. Factors such as healthy global demand for rubber from the automotive industry could help support prices," Suharto said.

He didn't set a target for prices to move up or a timeframe for the market to achieve that.

-By Nitsara Srihanam, Dow Jones Newswires; 662-266-0744; nitsara.srihanam@dowjones.com

-Edited by Denny Kurien

Alvin

May 20th, 2005, 04:31 PM

Indonesia to develop nuclear power plant by 2017: Kusmayanto

SURABAYA (Antara): State Minister for Research and Technology Kusmayanto Kadiman said here on Friday Indonesia would develop nuclear technology by 2017 for various peaceful purposes, including power generation.

"The energy policy strategy is focused on the plan to develop a nuclear power plant by 2017," Kusmayanto said after opening a maritime industry exhibition.

Kusmayanto said the plan, which does not specify a possible location for the plant, required a more detailed assessment.

When asked about the dangers of nuclear power, the state minister said any technology could pose dangers, which was why serious study and preparation were required.

"Even coal-fired power plants have the potential to explode," he said.

"About the location, the possibilities include Madura (East Java) or Muria (Central Java), but if these proposals are turned down it will be no problem to move to earthquake-free Kalimantan," he said.

Kusmayanto said preparations up to this point were limited to studies involving universities, research and development agencies, the National Development Planning Board and related agencies. (**)

Alvin

June 3rd, 2005, 02:38 PM

Indonesia plans first nuclear power unit in 2017

TOKYO (Bloomberg): Indonesia, Southeast Asia's biggest economy, plans to start generating electricity at a nuclear power plant in 2017, Indonesian Minister of Energy and Mineral Resources Purnomo Yusgiantoro said on Friday.

Indonesia is seeking support from Japan, Europe or Canada on building the project's reactors, the country's first, Katsuhiko Suetsugu, security general of the Asia-Pacific Energy Forum, cited Purnomo as saying in Tokyo. Suetsugu didn't provide details on the kind of support Indonesia is seeking.

Indonesia, Southeast Asia's most-populous nation, wants to bring electricity to 93 percent of homes by 2025 from about 55 percent in 2003. The country would use nuclear energy as an alternative to hydroelectric projects and thermal generators, which it now relies on.

Indonesia needs about $25 billion in the next 10 years to build power plants and transmission lines, Suetsugu said, citing Indonesian delegates attending an energy forum in Tokyo.

"We need 50 percent (of funding) from foreign investments, as the government has a limited amount of capital for building sufficient power plants," Purnomo told reporters in Tokyo. "U.S., Japan, China and European companies are actively seeing our market and we encourage Japanese Investors to come."

Purnomo was accompanying Indonesian President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono on a four-day visit to Japan that ended on Friday.

The Indonesian government last year revived plans to build an 800-megawatt nuclear power station on the slopes of the active Muria volcano on the northern coast of Central Java, after it was scrapped in 1997 following opposition from the public. The project is the first of 12 proposed. (**)

Alvin

June 6th, 2005, 02:59 PM

BHP Billiton may invest $300m in Indonesian coal mine

Melbourne (Bloomberg): BHP Billiton, the world's biggest exporter of coking coal used by steelmakers, may spend US$300 million developing a new mine in Indonesia to help meet rising demand for the fuel through 2010, Merrill Lynch & Co. said.

BHP Billiton plans to start mining at the Maruwai site in Kalimantan in 2008, producing 5 million tons of coking coal a year, Merrill analysts led by Vicky Binns said in a June 2 note.

The Melbourne-based company also told analysts global coking coal demand will rise as much as 58 percent through 2010, UBS AG analyst Glyn Lawcock said in a June 3 note.

BHP Billiton and rival miners are benefiting from surging steel production, led by China, that fueled a 120 percent increase in coking coal prices from April 1.

BHP Billiton is spending $468 million expanding its coal mines and plant in Australia and is aiming to produce 100 million tons of coking coal a year by 2010, up from 58 million tons in fiscal 2004.

"BHP management does believe China has changed the demand landscape," Binns said. "However, future growth is also going to be strong from Brazil and India, who will both likely ramp up steel production due to their own vast iron ore resources."

Of the $300 million to be spent on Maruwai, about half will be spent on mine development, and the remainder on infrastructure.

The site is 500 kilometers from the coast and "infrastructure is non-existent," Merrill's Binns said. Binns said the mine may only start in 2009. (*)

Zorobabel

June 11th, 2005, 07:15 PM

INDONESIAN CPO PRODUCTION GROWTH THE LARGEST IN THE WORLD

Kuala Lumpur (ANTARA News) - Indonesian crude palm oil grew 2.7 fold from 4.2 million tons in 1995 to 11.4 million tons in 2004 making Indonesi the largest CPO producing country in the world, Malaysian businessmen said.

Indonesia achieved amazing CPO growth of 2.7 fold during the past decade, Malaysian Palm Oil Board executives Mohd Basri Wahid and Chan Kook Weng said in their reports delivered on the sidelines of the International Fertilizers Industry Association Conference held here Wednesday.

Indonesia, however, could not defeat Malaysia that was recorded as the largest CPO production as its CPO production increased to 13.9 million tons in 2004 from 7.8 million tons in 1998.

Malaysia produced 51.34 percent out of world CPO production of 15.2 million tons in 1995 compared to Indonesia which produced 27.74 percent.

Nevertheless, Malaysia CPO production decreased to 46.66 percent out of international production of 29.95 million tons in 2004 compared to that of 38.06 percent Indonesia produced.

Apart from Indonesia and Malaysia, 10 other countries whose CPO outputs grew were Nigeria, Colombia, Thailand, Papua New Guinea, Ecuador, Costa Rica, Honduras, Brazil, Venezuela and Guatemala.

However, only five of the 12 countries, Malaysia, Indonesia, Papua New Guinea, Cote d`Ivote, and Colombia which were recorded as CPO exporting states.

"Malaysia and Indonesia had become leading CPO producing and exporting countries which had a total market share of 88 percent of international CPO export in 2004," the reports said.

The reports also said European Union had been the largest CPO importing group with a total import of 3.8 million tons in 2004, followed by China with 3.68 million tons, India 3.345 million tons and Pakistan 1.4 million tons.

International CPO demand would continue to increase in the future due to research and development to alter palm oil into bio energy to replace fuel energy.

Antara (http://www.antara.co.id/en/seenws/index.php?id=4277)

bahar

June 11th, 2005, 09:04 PM

Indonesia and Malaysia could create a very effective CPO cartel.

Zorobabel

June 16th, 2005, 04:02 AM

Does anyone have a picture of the newly built MT Fastron (built by PT PAL for Pertamina)?

Fir3blaze

June 16th, 2005, 10:35 PM

Sorry, no pics of MV fastron. Anyway, this news related to PT PAL from

www.jawapos.co.id

Kamis, 16 Juni 2005,
Overdemand, PAL Tolak Order USD 500 Juta

SURABAYA - Meskipun kapasitas produksinya sudah terpakai maksimal sampai 2008, namun pesanan untuk memproduksi kapal terus mengalir ke PT PAL. Akibatnya BUMN galangan kapal terbesar di Indonesia itu menolak order yang nilainya mencpai USD 500 juta.

Kondisi permintaan berlebih (overdemand) itu diungkapkan oleh Direktur Utama PT PAL Adwin H. Suryohadiprojo di sela acara serah terima kapal tanker MT Fastron 30.000 DWT pesanan PT Pertamina, di Surabaya, kemarin. Disebutkan Adwin, order yang membludak itu tidak lepas dari kemampuan PT PAL menciptakan branding Star 50 sehingga mendapat pengakuan pasar internasional. "Star 50 merupakan produk unggulan PT PAL untuk kapal berbobot mati 50.000 ton," jelas Adwin.

Pengakuan pasar global itu membuat pesanan dari Jerman, Italia, Turki, Hongkong berdatangan. "Pengusaha kapal dari beberapa negara Asia dan Eropa menetapkan Indonesia sebagai tempat pengadaan kapal selain China dan Korea. Sehingga order kami penuh sampai awal 2008," tuturnya. Kondisi tersebut menyebabkan PT PAL menolak pesanan yang nilainya tidak kurang dari USD 500 juta.

Lebih lanjut Adwin menyatakan, meskipun order dari mancanegara cukup tinggi, namun order dari dalam negeri tetap mendapat prioritas."Kami bersama sepuluh BUMN yang memiliki karakter sama yaitu padat teknologi, telah menyusun konsep sinergi dengan memaksimalkan nilai kelebihannya masing-masing," ujarnya. Sinergi itu diharapkan dapat mewujudkan kapal berteknologi tinggi sesuai standar internasional.

Saat ini kontrak yang sedang dikerjakan PT PAL antara lain, sembilan kapal tanker pesanan asing yaitu 3 kapal curah pesanan Turki dengan tonase 50 ribu DWT, 2 kapal bulk carrier pesanan Italia dengan tonase 18.500 DWT. Kemudian, 2 kapal curah DSBC (Double Skin Carrier Bulk) bertonase 50 ribu DWT pesanan Jerman, serta 2 unit kapal chemical tanker bertonase 26 ribu DWT pesanan Italia. Harga kontrak tiap kapal tanker tersebut rata-rata USD 25 juta-USD 30 juta per unit.

Hingga saat ini, BUMN tersebut juga telah mampu membangun kapal patroli seperti kapal cepat FCB 57 untuk TNI AL, FPB 28 untuk keperluan bea cukai dan Polri. Kapal Niaga yaitu tanker 30.000 DWT, kapal kontainer 1.600 TEUS, kapal penumpang sampai 500 penumpang, kapal curah 50.000 DWT, hingga kapal vessel untuk eksplorasi minyak dan pengeboran gas.

"Semuanya menggunakan rekayasa dan rancang bangun oleh putra dan putri Indonesia. Selain itu, kami juga terus bekerjasama dengan BPPT, Litbang Dephan, dan beberapa BUMN strategis," tutur Adwin. (faq)

Fir3blaze

July 6th, 2005, 02:20 PM

Taken frm jawapos.co.id

Rabu, 06 Juli 2005,
Produsen Mebel China Relokasi ke RI

JAKARTA - Ketersediaan bahan baku merupakan salah satu pertimbangan utama dalam menentukan tempat produksi. Hal ini yang mendukung rencana sejumlah investor China yang membidik Indonesia sebagai salah satu tempat relokasi produksi mebelnya.

"Persediaan rotan dan kayu kita menarik minat produsen mebel dari China. Hal ini ditunjukkan dengan rencana satu kelompok eksporter mebel asal China akan melakukan relokasi perusahaan ke Jepara. Ini dilakukan dalam upaya meningkatkan daya saing mereka," ujar Menteri Perdagangan Mari Elka Pangestu di Jakarta kemarin.

Menurut Mari, langkah investor China tersebut merupakan sinergi untuk sama-sama meningkatkan daya saing, khususnya di tingkat regional. "China punya investasi, pasar ekspor, dan bagaimana efisiensi produksi. Sementara Indonesia memiliki bahan baku dan keterampilan, barang kerajinan untuk bisa dijual bersama-sama ke pasar global," paparnya.

Ditanya nilai investasi yang akan ditanam eksporter mebel China, Mari mengaku tidak tahu pasti. Namun, sekelompok investor China tersebut setiap tahun mampu melakukan ekspor mebel USD 300 juta. "Saya kira mereka adalah investor potensial dan mereka sedang mempelajari dan menjajaki investasi di sini. Salah satu yang mereka tanya adalah masalah tenaga kerja," terangnya.

Dia mengatakan, masuknya investor China ke Jepara akan menyelesaikan kendala dana dan pemasaran yang masih mengemuka. "Pemerintah akan merespons aktif keinginan investor China ini. Tapi, pemerintah hanya sebagai fasilitator karena pada akhirnya swasta dengan swasta yang akan melakukan kerja sama," sebutnya.

Pemerintah, tambah dia, saat ini masih terus mempelajari rantai birokrasi investasi antara pusat dan daerah yang selama ini dianggap masih tumpang tindih. "Kita akan terus melakukan pembenahan. Kalau ada yang tidak perlu kita hapus dan harus transparan segala bentuk biaya yang harus dikeluarkan," katanya. (iw)

XxRyoChanxX

July 7th, 2005, 09:44 AM

a lot of good news !! this is nice 2 hear...indo has so much natural resources...they should make better use of it

Fir3blaze

July 12th, 2005, 04:51 PM

Taken from thejakartapost.com

Krakatau Steel expands hot-rolled-coil production to 3.4 million tons

JAKARTA (Antara): State-owned steel manufacturing company PT Krakatau Steel will expand its hot-rolled-coil production by one million tons with an additional investment commitment of US$350 million to $550 million, an official of the firm said on Tuesday.

"The completion of the project, expected by the year 2008, will raise the company's production capacity to 3.4 million tons of hot-rolled coils per annum," Krakatau Steel's secretary Doni Sugihmukti said.

The expansion of the existing production capacity of 2.4 million per annum would be done to meet rising demand for the product on the domestic market, he said.

Doni explained that the expansion plan was part of the company's effort to become a dominant steel player with production capacity of 10 million tons per year by the year 2013.

Irvan Kamal H, chairman of Krakatau Steel's privatization and expansion project, said that prequalification was being processed before being internationally tendered.

"The tender will take place within five-and-a-half months. The winner will be announced in January next year and the project will commence in June," he said, adding that the construction of the new project would take between 24 to 26 months. (**)

Alvin

July 17th, 2005, 03:01 AM

Bajaj to set up plants in Indonesia, Brazil

* Q1 net up 27% * Turnover jumps 30% * Stock split or bonus issue ruled out

CORPORATE BUREAU
Posted online: Sunday, July 17, 2005 at 0000 hours IST

PUNE, JULY 16: India’s second largest bike maker Bajaj Auto is setting up its first plant outside India in Indonesia, near Jakarta, chairman Rahul Bajaj announced at the company’s annual general meeting (AGM) here on Saturday.

Another operation would take off in Brazil in 18 months’ time, Mr Bajaj said. He also indicated to shareholders that free cash in the balance sheet will have to be used in product development, R&D and global forays.

“Bajaj Auto will have to execute a series of global forays that will require setting up of plants, acquisitions of companies, vendor and distribution networks and brand building to compete with renowned global players,” Mr Bajaj said.

A representative office opened in Indonesia in 2004-05. Bajaj has already announced plans to set up a joint venture there with a local partner to make three-wheelers. The Indonesia venture will be subsequently used to tap the Asean markets too. Executive director Sanjiv Bajaj said, so far the company had only exported products to other markets but it now had to take the next step of establishing its own operations in these markets. He said Bajaj Auto had already put in place a team in Indonesia under Klaus Biskup who is the company’s South-East Asia president.Mr Klaus, a former BMW man with experience of working in South-East Asia, will strategise the company’s foray into Indonesia. “This team is putting together a business plan not only for Indonesia but also South-East Asia and then replicate it in other big countries,” Sanjiv Bajaj said.

The rationale for the Indonesian operations, Mr Bajaj said, was that while the country itself accounted for seven million of the 32 million two-wheelers sold in the world, Asean accounted for another 6 million.

Alvin

July 20th, 2005, 07:30 AM

AP
Indonesia Seeks $560M for Palm Oil Farms
Tuesday July 19, 4:10 am ET
Indonesia Seeks $560 Million for Palm Oil Plantations in Borneo

JAKARTA, Indonesia (AP) -- Indonesia is seeking US$560 million (euro460 million) to develop massive palm oil plantations along the Malaysian border in Borneo, the agriculture minister said Tuesday.
The plantations are expected to occupy 214,000 hectares (528,800 acres) of land in Kalimantan province, providing more than 100,000 jobs, Anton Apriyantono said.

ADVERTISEMENT

"We are working on the details. We hope to execute the plan next year," he said, adding that domestic and foreign investors would be invited to take part. "We will help with licenses and tax incentives."

The project will cost 5.5 trillion rupiah (US$560 million, euro460 million) over a five-year period.

Palm oil is used for cooking throughout Southeast Asia.

Indonesia, the world's second-largest palm oil producer after Malaysia, produced 12.4 million tons of crude palm oil in 2004. The new project is expected to boost the country's annual output by around 554,000 metric tons by 2011.

Many of the jobs are expected to go to indigenous communities along the 850 kilometer-long (530-mile) border, some of whom seek work illegally in Malaysia.

Alvin

July 20th, 2005, 03:22 PM

Indonesia: Biggest energy waster

JAKARTA (Antara): Indonesia has been classified as one of the world's biggest wasters of energy, with low gross domestic product and growth rates despite the huge amount of resources it consumed, an official says.

M.A.M. Oktaufik, head of the energy efficiency division at the Agency for the Assessment and Application of Technology, said Indonesia's energy elasticity, a ratio of energy consumption growth and economic growth, reached 1.84 in 2004, compared toonly 1.69 in Malaysia, 1.16 in Thailand, 0.73 in Singapore, 0.26 in the United States, 0.17 in Canada and 0.10 in Japan.

"It is proven that industrialized countries which are willing to apply energy conservation technologies can save large quantities of energy," Oktaufik said.

On the world energy intensity index, which measures energy consumption against GDP, Indonesia got a score of 400, with Thailand at 350, less than 300 in the United States, and only 100 in Japan, he said.

The higher the numbers, the more inefficient the energy consumption in a country was, Oktaufik said. (**)

XxRyoChanxX

July 20th, 2005, 03:31 PM

tsk tsk..indo...~ ::sigh::

Alvin

July 26th, 2005, 03:03 AM

Monday July 25, 02:22 PM

Chinese Electronics Maker Vitron To Relocate Plants To Indonesia

SURABAYA, East Java, July 25 Asia Pulse - Chinese electronics producer Vitron is planning to relocate its production facilities to Gresik Industrial Eastate (GIE) in East Java province, a GIE spokesman said.

"Vitron has ordered about 15 hectares of land in Gresik Industrial Eastate, to which it will relocate its plants. But negotiations on the price are still underway," GIE's president director, Tjipto Sumarsono, told reporters here at the weekend.

He said GIE was offering complete supporting facilities to every company operating on its grounds, apart from the fact that its location was near a seaport.

Vitron would move its manufacturing plants to the estate, which is only 40 kilometers from Surabaya.

According to Sumarsono, another foreign company from Australia had also expressed interest in basing its production facilities in GIE. The company would produce oil drums for supply to state oil company Pertamina.

"Two national companies have also ordered at least three to five hectares of land in GIE, which is 180 hectares wide," he said, without elaboration.

GIE would also expand its business by opening a new industrial estate in Tambakboyo subdistrict, Tuban district and Kamal in Bangkalan district, Madura.

"GIE will cooperate with Tuban regional administration to open more industrial estates," he said.

He added that about 150 hectares of the 300 hectares of allocated land for the estate had been cleared.

Meanwhile, Kamal industrial estate, which is intended for small and medium-scale industries, would be built on 200 hectares of land with an initial investment of Rp50 billion ($US5 million).

(ANTARA)

sanhen

July 26th, 2005, 03:19 AM

errr... relocate from where?

Alvin

July 26th, 2005, 03:30 AM

errr... relocate from where?
China?
-----------------------------------------------------
Monday July 25, 10:11 AM
Indonesia Pertamina, Sinopec To Ink Refinery Pact This Wk
JAKARTA (Dow Jones)--State-run oil and gas company Pertamina (PTM.YY) and China Petroleum & Chemical Corp. (SNP), or Sinopec Corp., will sign an agreement later this week to jointly build a 150,000-200,000 barrels-a-day refinery in East Java, according to Indonesia's Mines and Energy Minister Purnomo Yusgiantoro.

The two companies will sign the agreement during President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono's state visit to China Wednesday-to-Saturday, Purnomo told reporters Sunday.

Purnomo didn't give any details on when the two companies will start building the refinery, the costs involved, and the ownership split.

President Yudhoyono will be meeting with the Chinese business community during his visit and will invite companies there to invest in Indonesia's power sector, Purnomo added.

sanhen

July 26th, 2005, 04:02 AM

*scratching head*
I thought China is the heaven for labour?
Indonesia labour market still cheaper than China?

Alvin

July 26th, 2005, 04:28 AM

*scratching head*
I thought China is the heaven for labour?
Indonesia labour market still cheaper than China?
well, I guess they see other advantages to relocating, including possibly diversifying their risk or something.

Alvin

July 27th, 2005, 03:38 PM

Chinese shoe industry could be relocated to Indonesia: Mari

JAKARTA (Antara): Indonesia will be ready if the China relocates its shoe-making companies here because of a trade row with the United States and the European Commission, Minister of Trade Mari Pangestu says.

"We have to be responsive and proactive in taking advantage of any changes ... we plan to approach owners of two giant shoe trademarks, like Nike and Adidas," Mari said on Wednesday when she visited PT Panarub, which produces Adidas shoes in Tangerang,Banten.

She said the trade row and the revaluation of Chinese yuan had opened up special opportunities and advantages for Indonesia, especially shoe producers.

China and Vietnam are still in a dispute with the U.S. and the EC, which have imposed anti-dumping regulations on shoe imports from the two countries, making their products more expensive than those from Indonesia, she said. (**)

Alvin

July 28th, 2005, 04:04 AM

I'm noticing a trend here...
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Thursday July 28, 11:48 AM

Relocate Sugar Plants From China To Indonesia: Association
JAKARTA, July 28 Asia Pulse - The association of sugar and wheat flour companies (Apegti) has offered the option for the government to relocate four sugar factories from China to Indonesia rather than build new factories in the country.

The government has plans to build more sugar factories in the country and has offered facility to build one in Merauke, Papua. ADVERTISEMENT

The association chairman Natsyir Mansyur said the capacity of sugar factories that could be relocated from China is 120,000 tons a year each and relocation will cost much less than building one new factory.

Altogether the cost of building a sugar factory using machines from the Chinese factories will be around Rp500 billion (US$50.6 million) as against Rp1.7 trillion for a new factory with an annual capacity of 120,000 tons, Natsyir said.

He said Apegti plans to relocate the Chiense sugar factories to Merauke , West Kalimantan, South Sulawesi and another area yet to be determined.

He said the association will seek cooperation with regional administration to share the cost.

(ANTARA)

Sielo

August 12th, 2005, 07:11 AM

LG Electronics Plans to Build Cell Phone Factory in Indonesia

JAKARTA, Aug 12 Asia Pulse - Top officials of South Korea's LG Electronics met Post and Telecommunications Director General Yusuf Iskandar yesterday to discuss plans to build a cellular phone factory in Indonesia.

Bae Jae Hoon, Executive Vice President of LG Electronics, said that the company was serious about building the plant.

The handphone market is growing fast in Indonesia, making it a potential market, Bae Jae Hoon said, adding that LG Electronic plans to build the factory with local partners.

LG Electronic already has a subsidiary in the country PT LG Electronics Indonesia producing TV sets, video cassette recorders, refrigerators and air conditioners.

Bae, however, gave no further details about the plant, including the value of investment involved.

XxRyoChanxX

August 12th, 2005, 09:49 AM

yeah..they should have more korean phones in indo..
indo ppl use mostly Nokia

Alvin

August 19th, 2005, 06:52 AM

10 August 2005

Indonesia passes China in coal boom

Soaring global energy demands and prices have made Indonesia the world's second-biggest coal exporter after Australia.

The Wall Street Journal reported there is a downside to the boom: The diversion of most of Indonesia's production to exports threatens to choke off a vital alternative energy source to power Southeast Asia's largest economy, at a time when rising oil prices and costly domestic fuel subsidies are stretching Jakarta's finances. Moreover, murky investment policies could frustrate efforts to better exploit the country's large coal reserves to meet the government's long-term production targets.

Mining analysts said Indonesia's coal is being increasingly committed under long-term contracts to foreign buyers determined to establish their own supply security to hedge against high oil prices. Indonesian coal production will probably rise to 157 million metric tons this year, up 15% from 2004, according to Macquarie Securities. More than 70% of total output will be for export.

Indonesia overtook China as the No. 2 coal exporter in 2003, after Beijing began to cut coal shipments to meet rising energy needs at home. Indeed, increased coal consumption by the booming economies of China and India, coupled with high oil prices, have helped swell world spot prices for thermal coal, which is burned in power plants, by 107% since July 2003.

Indonesia has an estimated 50.1 billion tons of coal deposits and ranks fourth in the Asian-Pacific region behind China, which has an estimated 114 billion tons of reserves; India, with 92 billion tons; and Australia, with 78 billion tons.

Alvin

August 27th, 2005, 09:59 AM

Indonesia secures $140m order from Adidas
Zakki P. Hakim, The Jakarta Post/Surabaya

Increasing fuel and electricity prices for industry will not deter foreign companies from investing in the country, a minister says.

Foreign companies that have secured US$140 million worth of orders from international sportswear brand Adidas for sports equipment and apparel are expected to open up factories in Indonesia.

"Adidas is set to order 14 million pieces of apparel and other sport equipment from various producers in the country," Minister of Trade Mari E. Pangestu told The Jakarta Post and Antara during a working visit earlier this week to Surabaya and Denpasar.

The footwear industry's labor-intensive nature needs to attract branded shoemakers to invest and encourage non-branded firms to follow suit.

At least 27 shoe companies have closed down since 2001, leaving 55,000 workers jobless. No new investment has been made since, for which industry players blame the rigid labor laws.

Indonesian Footwear Association (Aprisindo) and Korean Chamber of Commerce data show that as of 2004, 104 shoemakers in the country employed some 500,000 workers, but the number would exceed one million if supporting industries were included.

Mari said the government won Adidas' commitment during President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono's visit to China in July.

She added that Adidas was planning to relocate 20 percent of its production capacity in China to Vietnam and Indonesia. She did not elaborate on the investment figure.

"Vietnam will not get all 20 percent (of the relocation), so Adidas will surely have to place part of the relocation here," she said, adding that the government was trying to convince Adidas.

Mari will also head to Busan, South Korea -- the center of footwear manufacturers -- next week to convince shoemakers to invest in Indonesia.

"Busan shoemakers receive orders from Adidas and Nike. They are the manufacturers and we need to get them to make their products here," she said.

The minister will be accompanied by a team of representatives from the Investment Coordinating Board (BKPM), the Taxation Office, the Customs and Excise Office and the Ministry of Manpower and Transmigration.

As the main discouragement for the Korean shoemakers are labor regulations, she said, the team would explain the government's efforts in dealing with the issue to Korean businesspeople.

Mari is confident that if the country manages to attract branded shoemakers, non-branded footwear manufacturers would follow suit as domestic supporting industries flourished.

Separately, Aprisindo's East Java chapter chairman. Eddy Widjanarko, said that inconsistencies in the country's tax policy made it hard for supporting industries in the country to move forward.

Shoemakers prefer imported materials rather than local ones as the government imposes zero import duties on materials used to make export-oriented products, but imposes a 10 percent value-added tax (VAT) on local materials, he said.

Meanwhile, Danish shoemaker PT Ecco Indonesia president director Flemming Larsen said the firm had recently decided to expand its factory in China rather than the one in Sidoarjo, East Java, due to complicated taxation policies.

"We've decided to invest an additional $40 million in China, rather than here. China is more business friendly," he told the Post. He added that he had talked to the trade minister, who promised to address the issue.

Ecco, a premium shoe brand, exports 99 percent of its production of five million pairs of shoes annually to Thailand, China, Slovakia, Portugal and Japan.

Indonesia exported $1.35 billion worth of footwear last year, with 20 percent coming from East Java, in which the manufacturers were dominated by non-branded shoemakers.

Aprisindo expects this year's exports to reach $1.6 billion, and with new investment it may exceed $2 billion next year and $4 billion in 2010.

Alvin

August 28th, 2005, 11:03 AM

AP
Yudhoyono Calls for More Oil Production
Sunday August 28, 4:25 am ET
Indonesia's President Calls for More Domestic Production as Oil Prices Soar

JAKARTA, Indonesia (AP) -- Indonesia's president Sunday called for greater domestic oil and gas production to help the country battle the impact of soaring global crude oil prices that are threatening its economic recovery.
ADVERTISEMENT

Although Indonesia is the sole Southeast Asian member of the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries, slackening investment in oil exploration and extraction in the country has reduced output in recent years and made the country a net crude importer for several months in 2004.

Speaking after formally opening a new oil refinery in West Java, President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono said "we have to face the fact that our oil production is dropping year to year" and called on producers to reverse the trend.

"The potential is there, lets do it," he said.

Corruption and government red-tape are the main obstacles to foreign investment in the sector, analysts say. Yudhoyono has pledged to battle graft and legal uncertainty, but both problems remain deep seated.

Fuel subsidies aimed at protecting poor Indonesians from the affect of high prices have risen with the price of crude on the global market, putting pressure on the government's budget.

Last year, it spent around US$7.4 billion in 2004, or 3 percent of gross domestic product, on subsidies.

Last week, the local currency hit a 3 1/2 year low against the dollar, partly because of high demand for the greenback by state-owned Pertamina oil company to fund oil imports. The slide has alarmed the country, where memories of the 1998-99 Asian economic crisis are still strong.

Economy minister Aburizal Bakrie was quoted as saying Sunday that the government would take the politically sensitive step of raising fuel prices "early next year" but did not say by how much.

"This is a problem that can no longer be ignored," Bakrie said after meeting President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono and other ministers in the west Javanese town of Cirebon on Saturday, Kompas daily reported.

Yudhoyono hiked prices by nearly 30 percent in March to reduce pressure on the budget.

Another rise would likely spark anti-government protests among the country's 210 million people.

David-80

August 28th, 2005, 02:21 PM

Its now confirmed that next year, the gasoline prices will increase.

cheers

tata

August 28th, 2005, 03:27 PM

how much do you think petrol in Indonesia if government stop subsudizing? 3x the current price? And where to find the list of country where government is subsudizing petrol?

ksunarjo

August 28th, 2005, 03:51 PM

yeah..they should have more korean phones in indo..
indo ppl use mostly Nokia

IMO nokia has the most user friendly operating system.
no wonder its called "HP sejuta umat"

cOcO_cHaneL

August 28th, 2005, 04:05 PM

plus the menu is easier to operate for the amateurs (lyke ma dad) ehehehe

Alvin

August 30th, 2005, 05:03 AM

Chevron to make RI its Asian HQ
The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

U.S. Chevron Corp., the world's fifth-largest energy company, plans to make Indonesia the headquarters for its Asian operations, after its recent acquisition of a smaller rival turned the country into its largest operating ground.

Minister of Energy and Mineral Resources Purnomo Yusgiantoro said on Monday that Chevron conveyed its plan to expand its business in Jakarta and invest more in the oil, gas and geothermal sector to President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono.

"Chevron is now the largest foreign energy company in Indonesia and Asia. By expanding its headquarters in Jakarta, we expect it to have an advantageous multiplier effect for the country," he said.

Purnomo made the remarks after accompanying Chevron chairman and chief executive officer Dave O'Reilly to meet Susilo.

Chevron's sweetened bid of US$17.1 billion was accepted by rival Unocal Corp., defeating a bigger offer of $18.5 billion from the China National Offshore Oil Corp. (CNOOC).

In the meeting, Purnomo said, Susilo requested Chevron to increase its oil production in Indonesia, especially in the old fields around central Sumatra which accounted for about 50 percent of the country's oil output.

"Chevron said it would try to maximize oil output from this region from a steep decline. We know this is an old oil field. They also pledged to seek other oil and gas blocks in other part of the country to maintain its production," he said.

Purnomo said Chevron also disclosed its plan to operate the East Kalimantan gas pipeline and requested the government to help develop infrastructure for supplying gas to the local market.

In the geothermal sector, the company would upgrade its power plants in West Java by constructing two more power plants from the current two. The combined plants would have a total capacity of about 210 megawatts, Purnomo added.

Headquartered in San Ramon, California, Chevron operates in approximately 180 countries, with a capital and exploratory budget of US$10 billion this year, up from $8.3 billion in 2004.

From its oil output of more than 2.5 million barrels per day (bpd) last year -- with two-thirds of the volume derived from outside the United States and in more than 20 different countries -- the firm recorded a revenue of $150.9 billion and a net profit of $13.3 billion.

cOcO_cHaneL

August 30th, 2005, 08:09 AM

that's a really great news! ;)

Alvin

September 14th, 2005, 03:07 PM

Noble Group May Buy Two Indonesian Coal Mines, Elman Says

Sept. 14 (Bloomberg) -- Noble Group Ltd. may buy coal mines in Indonesia as the Hong Kong-based commodities supplier seeks to accelerate its investment in the Southeast Asian country, Chief Executive Richard Elman said.

Elman, 65, armed with $641 million of cash as of June 30, is searching for investments in Indonesia to add to stakes the company owns in a group of mines in Kalimantan, on the island of Borneo. The country was the world's third-largest coal exporter in 2003, according to the World Coal Institute.

Indonesia is seeking to curb inflation and stem a flow of capital out of Southeast Asia's largest economy after the rupiah slumped 8.7 percent against the dollar this year. The currency drop was triggered by a surge in global energy prices, which have boosted the government's fuel subsidy bill and increased demand for dollars in the only member of OPEC that is a net oil importer.

``We have always had huge confidence in Indonesia,'' Elman said today in an interview from Hong Kong. ``We have always believed in Indonesia as an economy and as a resource provider to the world. Nothing has changed. In fact, we are going to accelerate our interest there.''

Shares of Noble rose 1 cent, or 0.7 percent, to S$1.44 on the Singapore Exchange at 9:17 a.m. local time. The stock has gained 9.2 percent this year, less than the 12 percent increase in the benchmark Straits Times Index. Over the past five years, Noble shares have soared 1,683 percent, outperforming the index's 49 other members.

Alvin

September 18th, 2005, 02:22 AM

FInally, a deal is reached.

---------------------------------

Exxon to Develop Biggest Untapped Indonesian Oil Find (Update1)
Sept. 17 (Bloomberg) -- Exxon Mobil Corp. agreed to develop Indonesia's $2.6 billion Cepu oil field, a breakthrough in a four- year dispute with the state oil company over how to exploit the nation's biggest untapped deposit.

The standoff between state-owned PT Pertamina and Exxon Mobil, the world's biggest publicly traded oil company, has contributed to Indonesia's inability to meet rising fuel demand in Southeast Asia's only member of the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries. The nation's decline in oil output has averaged more than 5 percent annually during the last five years.

Today's resolution came after Indonesian oil and gas regulator BPMigas gave Exxon Mobil the right to the project in Java for the next 30 years, Novian Thaib, a director at energy ministry, told reporters today in Jakarta. Exxon Mobil and Pertamina still need to resolve who will oversee the project.

``We should be able to wrap it up very quickly,'' said Steve Greenlee, an Exxon representative who signed the production-sharing contract. ``They expect us to complete it as soon as possible, and we plan to do that.''

Just yesterday, Pertamina refused to accept the Irving, Texas- based oil company as the operator of the field.

Even with today's agreement, ``Pertamina is yet to discuss with Exxon Mobil about the operatorship and reach a joint operation agreement,'' said Mustiko Saleh, vice president director of Pertamina. ``We would like to see a concept of joint operatorship being applied.''

Government Pressure

The government on Aug. 12 said that Pertamina's president, Widya Purnama, would be fired for challenging President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono's attempt to resolve the dispute over the Cepu field. Yudhoyono needs to stem slumping output that has made the nation a net oil importer, increased fuel costs and undermined confidence in the rupiah.

The government on Sept. 14 said it would sign a final agreement this week to give Exxon Mobil a 30-year license to the field.

``This is a big and complicated deal that involves regulatory issues, partnership issues and harmonization of oil and gas laws,'' Chris Newton, president of the Indonesian Oil & Gas Association, said before the announcement. ``The fact that they are getting closer is an absolute miracle. The government has sent a strong signal that they want this done.''

Agreement

The revenue-sharing dispute ended June 22 when government-led negotiators said Exxon and Pertamina have equal shares, ranging from as little as 6.75 percent while the price of oil remains above $45 a barrel to as much as 13.5 percent should oil fall below $35.

Exxon Mobil had previously sought a 20 percent stake and a 30- year extension for the contract that expires in 2010.

According to the June agreement, Exxon Mobil and Pertamina would each have 45 percent of the venture to develop Cepu, and the local government 10 percent. The venture would get in total between 15 percent and 30 percent of the field's revenue, depending on oil prices.

Pertamina's Purnama on Aug. 8 said his company should get a bigger stake in Cepu and take over as operator from Exxon.

Pertamina wanted 18 percent of the field's revenue, Purnama said on Aug. 8. The percentage is calculated by taking 45 percent of the 40 percent share of total revenue Pertamina had been entitled to under an earlier agreement with the government, he said.

Investment Slowdown

Indonesia's failure to resolve the dispute earlier had stalled oil and gas projects, contributing to a slowdown in investments in the industry.

Indonesia's falling oil output is threatening its OPEC membership. The country pumped 940,000 barrels a day in August, according to Bloomberg estimates. That's only 67 percent of the nation's quota of 1.45 million barrels a day set by the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries.

The government plans to replace directors of the state oil company after Purnama rejected a government-brokered agreement to end a dispute with Exxon, Vice President Jusuf Kalla told reporters in Jakarta on Aug. 12, without saying when the meeting is or giving a reason for removing the board. State Enterprises Minister Sugiharto will decide on the new board to take office after the next shareholders' meeting, he said.

To contact the reporters on this story:
Claire Leow in Jakarta at cleow@bloomberg.net
Last Updated: September 17, 2005 08:29 EDT

Zorobabel

September 20th, 2005, 07:26 PM

Indonesian Minister Suggests Rice as Payment for Ptdi Planes

JAKARTA, Sept 20 Asia Pulse - Indonesian Minister of Industry Andung Nitimihardja said here Monday he had proposed that the National Logistic Agency (Bulog) barter Indonesian-made CN235 aircraft for rice with other countries to improve the performance of state aircraft making company PT Dirgantara Indonesia (PTDI).

"If we import rice, it can be connected with the use of domestic products," he told members of the House of Representatives (DPR)'s commission VI.

He said he had received information that Thailand, one of the world's key rice producing countries, wanted to buy Indonesia-made CN235 aircraft.

Bulog had basically agreed to the proposal and was waiting for follow-up decisions, he said.

Nitimihardja said PTDI currently had problems with its performance as a consequence of its limited financial capability.

Unfortunately, in order to improve the aircraft industry's performance, the government had no budget to assist it, he said.

Therefore, the government would seek a strategic partner that could help the aircraft industry improve its financial and marketing capabilities via bartering deals, he said.

He further said international confidence in the Bandung-based airplane maker had remained strong as could be seen from the orders it was continuing to receive from various foreign parties.

PTDI is estimated to have assets totalling Rp3 trillion (US$295 million) and employs around 3,700 workers.

(ANTARA)

Alvin

October 6th, 2005, 11:36 AM

Elnusa to build $2.5b-$3b refinery
The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

A subsidiary of state oil and gas firm PT Pertamina, PT Elnusa Harapan, is studying the possibility of building a refinery with a capacity of 300,000 barrels per day.

The refinery, which would be expected to start producing within four years, would cost between US$2.5 billion and $3 billion, Elnusa president director Rudy Radjab was quoted as saying by Detik on Wednesday.

Rudy said two-thirds of the fuel products from the refinery would be exported to China, while the rest would be used to meet domestic demand.

"We have signed contracts with Sinopec and CNPC," Rudy was quoted as saying, referring to the China Petroleum & Chemical Corp. and the China National Petroleum Company.

The refinery would process some 100,000 barrels per day of very heavy crude from Iran.

It is unclear from where the refinery would receive the rest of the crude.

Rudy said the company would conduct a preliminary feasibility study in the next two months and a more comprehensive one next year.

Among the possible locations for the refinery are Banten, Central Java and Riau.

The Ministry of Energy and Mineral Resources' director of oil and gas, Erie Soedarmo, said Elnusa had yet to submit a license application for the refinery.

"They need to provide data on the financing and location to get a permit," said Erie.

Indonesia will open the downstream oil and gas market to private investors in late November, after Pertamina's monopoly in the sector officially ends.

According to data from the energy ministry, PT Intanjaya Agromegah and PT Berkah Refinerindo Utama have secured principal licenses to build refineries capable of processing 300,000 barrels per day (bpd), in Parepare, South Sulawesi, and another in Trenggalek, East Java, respectively.

Applications from seven other companies are currently under evaluation. Also, a refinery with a capacity of 800 bpd in Musibanyuasin, South Sumatra is under construction.

Pertamina also plans to build a refinery with a capacity of up to 200,000 barrels per day in Tuban, East Java.

That refinery, to be constructed in cooperation with Sinopec, will be used to process crude produced by the untapped oil-rich Cepu block, located on the border between East Java and Central Java.

Zorobabel

October 7th, 2005, 01:53 AM

That's a massive refinery, and refineries are certainly resources that put Indonesia one step ahead of most countries in the region. Vietnam, for example, doesn't even have one major refinery and has to import all it's gasoline (not just oil).

Zorobabel

October 8th, 2005, 11:57 PM

Pertamina's Libya oil blocks could contain 1b barrels

Leony Aurora, The Jakarta Post/Jakarta

State oil and gas firm PT Pertamina may have more than 1 billion barrels of oil reserves in two Libyan blocks whose concession rights it recently acquired.

The Sabrata offshore block may contain 690 million barrels of oil, while the onshore Sirt block may contain between 300 million and 400 million barrels in reserves, Pertamina president director Widya Purnama said on Friday.

"We will start drilling as soon as possible," Widya said, adding that the Sirt block was ready for drilling with the seismic tests already having been conducted.

Pertamina was among 19 winners of a tender for oil blocks in Libya, where Africa's largest crude oil reserves lie. The winners of the tender were announced on Oct. 2. Indonesia's largest privately controlled oil and gas company, PT Medco Energi Internasional, entered bids for four blocks, but failed to win any of its bids.

Widya said Pertamina, through its subsidiary Pertamina EP Libya Ltd., would form a joint venture, in which it would hold a majority 55 percent stake, to explore the blocks.

Partners in the joint venture could include Indonesian as well as foreign companies, he said.

"We will sign the contract on Oct. 15 in Tripoli," said Widya.

Other successful bidders in the tender were U.S. energy giant ExxonMobil Corp., Italy's Eni Spa and Japan's Mitsubishi Oil Co.

Based on the winning bids, the Libyan government will receive between 71.5 percent and 92.5 percent of any petroleum produced by the blocks, as well as pocketing signing bonuses totaling US$103.4 million,

The figures of the production splits and signing bonuses offered by Pertamina have not been released.

The surge in global crude prices has prompted oil companies to boost exploration activities. Crude prices in New York have jumped by 42 percent this year, touching a record high of $70.85 per barrel on Aug. 30.

Pertamina has lagged behind its counterparts in Asia, including Malaysia's Petronas, in acquiring acreage and producing oil abroad.

Many of Pertamina's smaller and aging fields in Indonesia are underdeveloped, waiting for partners with the financial and technical ability to develop them.

Alvin

October 12th, 2005, 10:28 AM

Wednesday October 12, 10:47 AM
Japan JFE Engineering In Y18B Indonesia Gas Pipeline Deal

TOKYO (Dow Jones)--JFE Engineering Corp., a unit of Japanese steel maker JFE Holdings Inc. (5411.TO), has signed a Y18-billion contract to build a natural gas pipeline on Indonesia's Sumatra Island.

Under the contract signed with Indonesia's state-owned natural gas monopoly PT Perusahaan Gas Negara (PGAS.JK), or PGN, JFE Engineering will construct a 270-kilometer section of a planned 500-kilometer pipeline, a JFE spokesman said Wednesday.

The proposed pipeline will connect the onshore Pagardewa gas field in southern Sumatra to western Java, where energy demand has continued to grow.

JFE Engineering expects a total of 62,000 metric tons of steel to be used for the 270-kilometer section, which will run from the gas field to Labuhanmeringgai, the southeasternmost tip of Sumatra.

The spokesman said construction of this first phase of the project is slated to be completed by late 2007.

PGN hasn't decided who will construct the remainder of the pipeline, said the JFE spokesman, adding that JFE hopes to win a contract to build the rest of the project.

ADVERTISEMENT

In March 2003, the Japan Bank for International Cooperation, or JBIC, signed a 40-year loan of Y49.09 billion with PGN for the pipeline project, with an annual interest rate of 0.95%.

Alvin

October 19th, 2005, 01:55 PM

Wednesday October 19, 12:59 PM

Indonesia says Japan firms eye power plant project

JAKARTA, Oct 19 (Reuters) - Several Japanese firms, including Itochu Corp , Marubeni Corp and Sumitomo Corp , have shown interest in building a power plant in West Java, Indonesia's state-owned power company said on Wednesday.
PT Perushaan Listrik Negara (PLN) director Ali Herman Ibrahim told reporters the company wanted to open the tender for the 600 megawatt (MW) coal-fired power plant as soon as it could.

"There are more than 30 companies, local and foreign, that are interested. PLN will carry out pre-qualification to select which firms can qualify to join the tender," Ibrahim said.

"PLN will work fast to meet the operation target of the project, as we want it to come onstream around 2011. PLN will open the tender as soon as possible," Ibrahim said.

Indonesia, struggling to cope with electricity shortages, has said it wanted to issue tenders this year for eight power plants, located mostly on the country's main island of Java, with a combined capacity of 3,670 megawatts.

In August, a massive power cut disrupted supplies to tens of millions of people on Java and also on neighbouring Bali island. The blackout highlighted the precarious state of Indonesia's ageing power network in the face of fast-growing demand.

Indonesia has said it wanted to add 24,000 MW of electricity by 2013, in projects estimated to cost $30 billion.

Alvin

October 19th, 2005, 02:11 PM

INDONESIA TO NEED 600,000 BBL REFINERY CAPACITY IN 5 YRS: OPEC

Wednesday October 19, 2005, 12:54 pm

JAKARTA, Oct 19 Asia Pulse - Indonesia will need another oil refinery with a capacity of 600,000 barrels per day in the next five years, OPEC Governor for Indonesia Maizar Rahman said.

"To keep its the fuel oil stock at a safe level, Indonesia will need at least two more oil refineries with a capacity of 300,000 barrels per day each," Maizar said here on Tuesday.

Indonesia was until now still importing some 400,000 barrels per day of fuel oils because of the limited capacity of its oil refineries, he noted. To meet domestic demand for fuel oils, the country`s crude refining capacity needed to be increased by some 50,000 barrels per day every year, he said.

The building of a refinery with a capacity of 200,000-300,000 barrels per day would take five years, he added.

"Over the next five years, Indonesia`s need for fuel oil imports will reach some 650,000 barrels per day. But if we now build an oil refinery with a capacity of 2 X 300,000 barrels per day in the next five years, we will no longer need to import fuel oils," he said.

He said, to be economical, a new refinery would have to have a capacity of 300,000 barrels per day. "If the capacity in under 300,000 barrels per day, building a refinery will not be economical," he said.

He said the construction cost of an economical refinery was US$8 per barrel which broke down into US$2 in production cost per barrel, US$2 in energy cost and another US$4 in profit margin.

The overall capacity of the seven oil refineries owned by state oil company PT Pertamina was 1.025 barrels per day, he said.

(ANTARA)

Sielo

October 20th, 2005, 05:28 AM

Indonesia's Car Exports Shoot Up 120 PCT In Jan-Sept

JAKARTA, Oct 20 Asia Pulse - Indonesia's car exports surged 120.8 per cent in the first nine months of this year from the same period last year, the Bisnis Indonesia daily reported Thursday.

Quoting data from the Association of Automotive Producers (Gakindo), the paper said exports of four wheelers totaled 66,515 units in the January-September period this year up from 30,119 units in the same period last year.

The exports in the nine month period exceeded exports of 45,990 units for the whole of 2004.

Dominating exports during that period was Toyota cars with exports totaling 59,164 units, followed by Suzuki cars with exports of 6,186 units and Honda cars totaling 1,087 units.

In September, car exports totaled 8,714 units, up from 5,271 units in the same month in 2004.

Zorobabel

October 20th, 2005, 05:52 AM

Wow, nice.

tata

October 20th, 2005, 09:42 AM

The same article in Bhs Indonesia

Ekspor mobil RI melonjak 120%

JAKARTA: Total ekspor kendaraan roda empat selama Januari-September tahun ini melonjak 120,8% dibandingkan periode yang sama tahun lalu terdorong oleh meningkatnya pengiriman mobil Toyota dan Suzuki.

Di tengah ancaman lesunya pasar otomotif nasional, ternyata kegiatan eksportasi kendaraan bermotor roda empat tahun ini menunjukkan gairah yang cukup menggembirakan.

Data Gabungan Industri Kendaraan Bermotor Indonesia (Gaikindo) yang dikutip PT Astra International Tbk mengungkapkan selama sembilan bulan pertama tahun ini jumlah pengiriman mobil ke luar negeri mencapai 66.515 unit, sementara pada periode yang sama 2004 hanya 30.119 unit. Bahkan, realisasi ekspor Januari-September itu telah melampaui total ekspor mobil sepanjang tahun lalu yang hanya 45.990 unit.

Selama periode tersebut, tiga produsen mobil mencatat angka ekspor yang cukup besar. Produsen mobil Toyota yaitu PT Toyota Motor Manufacturing Indonesia (TMMIN) mengekspor sebanyak 59.164 unit. Kegiatan eksportasi ini dilakukan ke sejumlah negara, a.l Arab Saudi, Oman, Kuwait, Uni Emirat Arab, Bahrain, dan Qatar. Model yang diekspor adalah Avanza dan Innova.

Ekspor mobil Indonesia periode Januari-September 2005
Merek Volume
Toyota 59.164
Suzuki 6.185
Honda 1.087
Peugeot 72
Daihatsu 4
Mitsubishi 3
Sumber: PT Astra International Tbk

Suzuki yang diproduksi PT Indomobil Sukses International (ISI) sepanjang sembilan bulan pertama 2005 telah mengekspor sebanyak 6.185 unit. Suzuki baru mulai melakukan eksportasi sejak April tahun ini melalui produk unggulannya APV ke 53 negara, antara lain Singapura, Thailand, Brunei, Filiphina, Malaysia, Pakistan, Australia, Selandia Baru, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Panama, Nikaragua, Tanzania, dan Maroko.

Merek mobil lain yang juga sudah dijual ke pasar luar negeri selama Januari-September 2005 adalah Honda sebanyak 1.087 unit, Peugeot 72 unit, dan Daihatsu 4 unit. Mitsubishi yang belum lama ini memindahkan basis produksi kendaraan penumpangnya ke Thailand dilaporkan mengekspor 3 unit.

Khusus bulan lalu, Gaikindo mencatat adanya kenaikan ekspor mobil Indonesia sebesar 65,3% menjadi 8.714 unit dari September 2004 yang hanya 5.271 unit. Pada bulan ini, PT TMMIN memberikan kontribusi sebanyak 7.146 unit, sedangkan ekspor Suzuki mencapai 1.568 unit. Honda dan Mitsubishi dilaporkan tidak melakukan kegiatan eksportasi.

Kualitas global

Terhadap fenomena lonjakan angka ekspor mobil, Sekjen Gaikindo Freddy Sutrisno pernah mengatakan bahwa kondisi ini menggambarkan produsen mobil di Indonesia sudah mampu menciptakan kendaraan dengan kualitas global.

Salah satu penyebabnya, menurut dia, adalah kebijakan sejumlah produsen otomotif yang menjadikan Indonesia sebagai basis produksi untuk kendaraannya. Beberapa prinsipal yang telah menetapkan Indonesia sebagai basis produksi kendaraan andalannya, a.l. Suzuki dengan APV, Toyota dengan Avanza dan Innova, serta Honda melalui Stream dan Jazz.

Presiden Direktur PT ISI Soebronto Laras sebelumnya menyatakan akan menggenjot ekspor model APV hingga 15.000 unit tahun ini untuk mengantisipasi kemungkinan penurunan penjualan di pasar domestik akibat gejolak ekonomi makro.

"Target Suzuki tahun ini dapat menjual 120.000 unit; 110.000 unit di pasar domestik dan 10.000 ekspor. Di dalam negeri mungkin turun 5.000 unit jadi 105.000 unit. Tapi sebagai penyeimbang, kami akan tingkatkan APV hingga 15.000 tahun ini," ujanya ketika itu. (ahmad.muhibbuddin@bisnis.co.id)

Oleh Ahmad Muhibbuddin
Bisnis Indonesia

Alvin

October 26th, 2005, 11:51 AM

26-10-2005: Total to spend RM5.6b in Indonesia in 2006

French oil group Total plans US$1.5 billion (RM5.67 billion) in capital expenditure in Indonesia in 2005, mostly for upstream activities, up from around US$1 billion this year, a company official said on Oct 26.

"Total will implement new gas fields development to maintain production. Total plans to invest US$1.5 billion in Indonesia next year," Total Indonesie spokesman Ananda Idris said.

He said Total was developing two new natural gas fields, namely Sisi and Nubi in the Mahakam block off the coast of East Kalimantan, expected to begin production in 2007.

Idris said natural gas production was at 2.5 billion cubic feet (bcf) per day and Total would maintain current output through the end of this year and next year.

Total supplies natural gas to the Bontang liquefied natural gas (LNG) plant in East Kalimantan.

Indonesia, Asia's only Opec member, is the world's biggest LNG exporter, but has found it difficult to meet contractual supply commitments as output has declined and some natural gas has been diverted to the domestic market.

It plans to ship 25 million tonnes of LNG to Japan, South Korea and Taiwan this year, but has had to buy additional cargoes in the spot market to cover its contracts. -- Reuters

Alvin

October 26th, 2005, 11:54 AM

Wednesday October 26, 11:24 AM

Indonesia To Surpass 2005 Natural Rubber Export Target

JAKARTA, Oct 26 Asia Pulse - Indonesia's exports of natural rubber are predicted to be worth about US$2.5 billion this year, overshooting the previously set target by 40 per cent, the Bisnis Indonesia reported Tuesday.

Deputy chairman of the Indonesian rubber companies (Gapkindo) Asril Sutan Amir told the daily that in the three months until the end of this year, the country has an opportunity to export up to 400,000 tons of natural rubber valued at US$450 million. ADVERTISEMENT

In the first nine months of this year exports already reached the year's target of US$2 billion, Asril said.

He said the price of natural rubber was stable at Rp162,000-Rp163,000 per kg and the price even peaked at Rp165,000 per kg earlier this month.

The price of natural rubber is not expected to decline as long as the crude oil prices remain high, Asril said.

Indonesia is the world's second largest supplier of natural rubber after Thailand. Together with Malaysia as the world's third largest producer, the three ASEAN countries dominate natural rubber production in the world.

(ANTARA) A

Alvin

November 1st, 2005, 09:05 AM

Tuesday November 1, 06:05 PM

Indonesia To Operate New Oil Refinery In East Java Next Year

JAKARTA, Nov 1 Asia Pulse - Indonesia is ready to operate a new oil refinery in Tuban, East Java, early next year, which has a capacity of producing up to 60,000 barrels a day, Minister of Energy and Mineral Resources Purnomo Yusgiantoro said here on Sunday.

"With it the government will have built two refineries so far with a capacity of producing a total of 110,000 barrels a day," he said. ADVERTISEMENT

Some months ago President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono dedicated a refinery in Balongan, West Java, with a capacity of producing 50,000 barrels a day.

The minister said that in the wake of the recent fuel oil price hike several businessmen had expressed interest in buildig oil refineries in the country.

"Some businessmen who have already obtained the necessary permit for such project, but have never used them have now bcome interested in using them now that oil prices are competitive," he said.

Purnomo said the refinery in Tubah would meet the fuel oil need of the petrochemical plant there. Meanwhile he said the government was now also planning to build another refinery with a capacity of 200,000 barrels a day in Tubah in cooperation with Sinopec from China.

"Other refineries will also be built in Pasuruan, Bojonegoro, Selayar, Pare-Pare and Batam," he said.

(ANTARA)

bahar

November 8th, 2005, 10:22 AM

MUMBAI (Reuters) - State Bank of India (SBI.BO: Quote, Profile, Research) said on Monday it had agreed to buy 76 percent of Indonesia's PT Bank IndoMonex for an undisclosed amount, in the third overseas acquisition by India's largest lender this year.

State Bank had earlier bought Mauritius-based Indian Ocean International Bank and Giro Commercial Bank Ltd. in Kenya.

bahar

November 8th, 2005, 10:23 AM

TOKYO, Nov 4 (Reuters) - INPEX Corp. (1604.T: Quote, Profile, Research), a Japanese oil and gas exploration company, said on Friday it would start commercial production of liquefied natural gas (LNG) from the Masela block in Indonesia in the first half of 2010.

Production at the offshore block in the Timor Sea is expected to start at between 3 million and 5 million tonnes a year, and INPEX will start drilling for commercial production in the middle of 2006, a company spokesman said.

The Masela block is 100 percent owned by INPEX, but the company said it might sell some of the shares to one or more operation partners.

"It is a common industry practice to set up a joint venture to run a project, and we have been contacted by many companies," the INPEX spokesman said.

He declined to name the companies.

As of 0148 GMT, INPEX shares were up 3.27 percent at 822,000 yen, outpacing a gain of 0.66 percent in Tokyo's Nikkei average.

INPEX confirmed gas reserves in Masela in 2000, but this was the first time it said when commercial production would start.

The spokesman declined to confirm a report by the Nihon Keizai business daily on Thursday that investments to build facilities in Masela, including a liquefication plant and pipelines, might total 500 billion yen ($4.3 billion).

He also declined to confirm the Nikkei's report that INPEX would start marketing LNG produced in Masela to Japanese utilities in 2007 on a long-term contract basis as well as to users on the U.S. West Coast and in India and China, and that it would start building production facilities at the block after 2008.

Japan is the world's largest LNG importer, absorbing almost half the fuel exported globally every year. In the year to March 2005 it imported about 58 million tonnes of LNG.

INPEX was set up in 1966 as a government-supported firm to explore for oil and gas overseas because of a lack of resources in Japan. It now produces oil and gas overseas, mainly in Indonesia and Australia.

The company estimates its reserves at 1.6 billion barrels of oil equivalent and booked daily production of 189,400 barrels for nine months to December.

INPEX's profile was lifted in February 2004 when the company agreed to develop the huge untapped Azadegan oilfield in Iran despite objections from the U.S. government. Azadegan is estimated to be the world's second-biggest single oil reserve at 26 billion barrels.

INPEX also has a 10 percent stake in the Azeri-Chirag-Guneshli (ACG) group of fields, which have estimated recoverable reserves of 5.4 billion barrels, in the Caspian Sea off Azerbaijan. The ACG project is led by BP Plc (BP.L: Quote, Profile, Research).

Alvin

November 10th, 2005, 10:12 AM

This is one HUGE refinery....hope the deal pans out.

---------------------------------------------------------------------

Pertamina unit,Iran company to build US$3 billion oil refinery: Official

JAKARTA (Dow Jones): Indonesia's PT Elnusa, a unit of state-owned PT Pertamina, and an Iranian company plan to build a $3 billion oil refinery in the country, Elnusa's chief operating officer said Thursday.

The refinery will have a processing capacity of 300,000 barrels a day, Rudy Radjab told reporters.

Indonesia's current total processing capacity is 1.06 million b/d.

The Cilacap refinery in the southern coastal area of Central Java is the largest refinery in the country, with a 230,000 b/d capacity.

The planned refinery will likely export 200,000 bbl of its planned total output, Rudy said, without elaborating on which markets the products will be sold in.

Elnusa and its partner, Nafta Iran, will sign a preliminary agreement next month on the development of the refinery, Rudy told reporters.

He didn't say when work will start on the refinery.

The refinery might be built either on Batam Island or in Banten Province, Rudy added.

It will process crude oil to be imported from Iran, he said, without elaborating.

The refinery will help to reduce Indonesia's dependance on petroleum products, which makes the country - the sole Southeast Asian member of the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries - a net oil importer.

Many refinery projects in Indonesia have previously fallen through because there wasn't any legal framework for private investors who wanted to operate oil refineries prior to the enactment of the 2001 Oil and Gas Law. (**)

Alvin

November 10th, 2005, 10:19 AM

Indonesia eyes solar, microhydro power plants

The Indonesian government is planning to build thousands of small scale solar power units and microhydro plants on its eastern islands next year to boost power capacity in remote areas.

The government will build 15,000 household solar power units, each with a capacity of 100 watts, the Ministry of Energy and Mineral Resources' Director General of Electricity and Energy Yogo Pratomo was quoted Tuesday by The Jakarta Post as saying.

"We hope the (small-scale) power units will meet electricity demand in remote areas in eastern Indonesia," he said.

Each of the solar cell units will cost between 5 million rupiah (500 US dollars) and 6 million rupiah in construction.

"However, they won't use any fuel except sunlight so there is no extra expense," said Yogo.

Aside from utilizing sunlight, the government also plans to build 200 microhydro power plants with a capacity of between 50 kilowatts (kW) and 500 kW each. Investment needed for every kW is estimated at 20 million rupiah (2,000 dollars).

The development of power capacity in the country has been hampered due to a lack of funds since the monetary crisis severely hit the country in 1997, despite the steadily rising demand.

State-run electricity company PLN is focusing its expansion on Java -- where more than half of the country's population live and an estimated 70 percent of the country's economic activity is located -- Bali and Sumatra. The company has allocated just 17 percent of its projects for other islands.

The latest data from the World Bank shows that the electrification ratio in Java reaches 72 percent, while that in Maluku is limited to 50 percent. Only one in five people enjoys the luxury of electricity in natural resource-rich Papua, Indonesia's least-developed province.

Despite massive potential, power plants using renewable energy sources contribute only a small portion of the country's total installed power capacity of about 25,000 megawatts (MW).

The installed capacity of mini and micro hydropower plants is only 54 MW, while those utilizing geothermal and biomass energy have installed capacity of 800 MW and 302 MW, respectively.

The government aims to raise the use of new and renewable energy sources in power generation from 0.2 percent currently to 4 percent by 2020.

Source: Xinhua

Alvin

November 10th, 2005, 12:27 PM

Thursday November 10, 10:46 AM
Sumitomo says wants to invest more in Indonesia
JAKARTA, Nov 10 (Reuters) - Japan's Sumitomo Corp wants to expand its investment in Indonesia's power sector because of the country's growing demand for energy, the company's chief said on Thursday.
"Indonesia needs more electricity in future. That's why if there is a chance for us, we are interested in participating," Sumitomo chief executive officer Motoyuki Oka told reporters after meeting President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono.

Separately, Mines and Energy Minister Purnomo Yusgiantoro said Sumitomo planned to expand the coal-fired Tanjung Jati B power plant in Central Java with another 1,320 megawatts.

Sumitomo is already involved in Tanjung Jati B, which will have a capacity of 1,320 MW when it comes on stream next year.

Indonesia's state electricty firm, PT Perusahaan Listrik Negara (PLN), has said several Japanese firms, including Sumitomo, have shown interest in building a power plant in West Java province.

PLN has said it wanted to open a tender for the 600 MW coal-fired power plant as soon as it could.

In August, a massive power cut disrupted supplies to tens of millions of people on Java and also on neighbouring Bali island. The blackout highlighted the precarious state of Indonesia's ageing power network in the face of fast-growing demand.

Indonesia has said it wanted to add 24,000 MW of electricity by 2013, in projects estimated to cost $30 billion.

XxRyoChanxX

November 11th, 2005, 12:18 AM

wow sumitomo...!

Alvin

November 12th, 2005, 07:06 AM

Indonesia raids one of world's largest ecstasy factories

Jakarta (dpa) _ Indonesian police raided an ecstasy factory in West Java thought to be one of the largest in the world and capable of making millions of pills a month, local media reported Saturday.

Some 14 suspects, including one Dutch, one French and four Chinese nationals, were arrested after police stormed the factory Friday night and seized equipment and massive amounts of chemicals used for the production of the illegal party drug.

``The materials consist of 62.4 tons of chemicals for making methamphetamine and another 6.7 tons for making ecstasy pills,`` General Sutanto was quoted as saying by the state-run news agency Antara. Police confiscated thousands of ecstasy pills and hundreds of kilogrammes of methamphetamine ready for delivery to Hong Kong, he said.

The factory in Serang district, 80 kilometres east of Jakarta, was able to produce some 100 kilogrammes of ecstasy per week, which could be used to make about 1 million pills, police said.

The former cable factory had been under surveillance since May after a tip-off from Chinese authorities that a machine used to make ecstasy had been delivered from China to Indonesia, Indradi Tanos, a chief with Indonesia's anti-drug police, told Kompas newspaper.

Authorities said the factory, on 4,000 hectares of land, was capable of earning some 100 billion rupiah (about 10 million dollars) a week, and said it was thought to be the third largest factory in the world after ones uncovered in Fiji and China.

F-ian

November 12th, 2005, 08:09 AM

macgyver

November 12th, 2005, 08:51 AM

Indonesia Should have its own Itaipu Dam(the second biggest electricity Dam in Brazil and Paraguay that produces Kurang lebih 12,000 MW) or the Three Gorges Dam (The biggest Electicity Dam in the world in China When Completed 2009 will produce 18.5 Giga watt)
they sould make it in Sungai Kapuas(Ind Longest River) We wouldn't have to hemat energi

Oey ... di kapuas mo di bikin di sebelah mana ? ha ha ha ..

yg masih mungkin tuh di papua ma di aceh ... blah

F-ian

November 12th, 2005, 09:03 AM

well maybe they can make an artificial dam in Kapuas or maybe Pembankit tenaga Surya in Pontianak (cuz its in the Equator, so its hot!) hehe

Alvin

November 15th, 2005, 01:33 PM

Tuesday November 15, 5:17 PM
Indonesia Toyota Astra Sees Car Industry '06 Sales Dn 21%

JAKARTA (Dow Jones)--Indonesia-based car manufacturer PT Toyota Astra Motor, or TAM, Monday said total industry domestic car sales next year could fall by up to 21% to 420,000 units from an expected 510,000-530,000 units this year due mostly to the high interest rate outlook.

"The high interest rate and inflation rate could hurt car sales next year," TAM President Johnny Darmawan told reporters Tuesday.

TAM is 95% owned by Toyota Motor Corp. (TM) and 5% by PT Astra International (ASII.JK).

Darmawan said he expects his company to maintain a market share of above 30% of total domestic car sales this year. He refused to forecast TAM's market share for next year.

The Indonesian automotive industry had initially targeted car sales this year to rise to 550,000 from 483,295 units sold in 2004.

The central bank early this month hiked its benchmark Bank Indonesia Rate to 12.25% from 11% to stem rising inflation. The Central Bureau of Statistics recently announced that annual inflation in October jumped to 17.89% after the government more than doubled fuel prices.

Analysts said the high interest rate, which is expected to continue to rise in coming months, could prevent people from buying cars through bank loans.

TAM's Darmawan, however, said that if inflation and interest rates stabilize, domestic car sales next year could be flat at 530,000 units.

By Esther Fin Harini; Dow Jones Newswires; 62-21- 3983 1277; djn.jakarta@dowjones.com

-Edited by Alan Soughley

macgyver

November 20th, 2005, 10:01 AM

Tigers With No Claws
Emerging markets in Asia are struggling to regain the momentum of the 1980s and 1990s.

ONSCENE
• Jordanians Take to the Streets After Bombing
• Onscene: Riots and Rage in Suburbs of Paris
• Saddam Defies Court Trying Him for Murder
• Iraqi Sunnis Answer Call to Vote
• In Mosul, Referendum Appears to Go Smoothly
• Romania’s Fight Against Bird Flu
• Suffering, Frustration After Quake
• Bogged Down in Basra
• Bali Bomb Victims Fight the Horror
• Dances with Death: Marines on Patrol in Iraq

HIGHLIGHTS
• Iraq: Baghdad's Surprise Deal with Tehran
• Russia: The Kremlin's Real Fear
• Essay: Garry Kasparov on Russia's Rocky Future
• Turkey: Standing up to the Generals
• Egypt: Taking Out the Opposition
• Vietnam: Cheaper than China
• Japan: Buyout Firms Go Bargain Hunting
• S. Korea: ‘Speculative’ Funds Under Fire
• Global Investor: Saudi Arabia's Sneaky WTO Bid
• India: Banking on Smarts
Live Vote
Do you think Moscow can keep control of the Caucasus?
Yes
No
I don't know

Vote to see results

Gulf Hurricanes

Complete Coverage
• Photo Gallery: Hurricane Wilma's Wrath
• Lessons from a Deadly Season
• Another Reason to Digitize Records
• Portrait of the Poor: An Interactive
• Faces of Katrina: A Photo Essay

Related Stories

| What's this?
• Tigers bringing back Trammell and staff
• Believe it: Tigers top Twins, now 4-0
• Tigers sweep Jays for best start since ’85
• Should you try to ‘time’ the market?
• Tigers hope changes will spur turnaround

BLOG TALK
Read what bloggers are saying about this Newsweek article

There are no posts that link to this article yet. See the most blogged about articles on Newsweek.

DEPARTMENTS
• International Periscope
• Perspectives
• International Mail Call
• World View: First Ladies, in The Truest Sense
• The Good Life
Search the Site

By Ruchir Sharma
Newsweek International

Nov. 28, 2005 issue - Every bull market has its stars. During the previous boom in emerging markets that ended a decade ago, the superstars were the tigers of Southeast Asia. At that time, the economies of Thailand, Indonesia and Malaysia were growing at an average of 8 percent and were the largest components of emerging-market equity benchmarks. In development-economics classrooms, these countries were called paragons; their high savings rates, industrious work forces and competent management of macroeconomic policy were cited as the signposts of Asia's new dynamism and savvy. In contrast, Eastern Europe was marked by economic chaos, and Latin American economies symbolized decadence.
Story continues below ↓ advertisement

Today, we're well into another bull run in global equities, one that began in March 2003. Investors increasingly buy into the thesis that forces of "economic catch-up" have been unleashed by globalization—and as a result, interest in developing markets has never been higher. Emerging markets in aggregate have gained more than 150 percent since the run-up began. But this time most markets in emerging Asia have lagged considerably, with those in Taiwan and Malaysia, for instance, rising by less than a third of the average increase in the emerging-markets equity benchmark. Leading the pack: Eastern Europe, the Middle East and Latin American markets, with countries from Russia to Romania registering robust growth rates that were once commonplace in East Asia.

To be sure, equity-market performance and economic-growth profiles can at times be distant cousins. In the mid-1990s, when East Asia's rate of economic expansion dazzled the world, some of the region's markets generated pedestrian equity returns. But those were the days when corporate governance standards in emerging markets were poor, and management incentives at companies often weren't aligned with shareholder interests. The corporate culture today is much improved, and equity markets are more reflective of economic reality. The message from the marketplace, then, is that apart from China and India, emerging Asian economies are struggling to regain the momentum of the 1980s and 1990s at a time when the rest of the developing world has never had it so good.

Just before the 1997-98 Asian crisis, Thailand, with a population of 60 million people, topped the global consumption tables for Mercedes-Benz cars, Volvo trucks and Johnnie Walker Scotch whisky. Today, Bangkok hardly features in the plans of major luxury-brand managers. Overseas investors are increasingly tuning out of Southeast Asia. In Thailand, foreign direct investment as a percentage of gross domestic product is running at 0.6 percent on an annualized basis, or half of what it was a decade ago, while in Indonesia and in the Philippines the level has fallen to a quarter of 1995 levels.

Excluding China and India, there has been little new investment in many East Asian countries since the 1997-98 crisis. Therefore, following a modest upturn in the past few years, these countries are now hitting capacity constraints and seeing a buildup in inflationary pressures. That's partly due to record crude-oil prices, but many oil-consuming countries in Eastern Europe have been able to cope better, thanks to reforms that have boosted productivity.

Southeast Asian countries were always at the lower end of the value-added chain, and never invested much in building human capital. Today, these countries are being displaced by a more competitive China on the manufacturing front and losing out to nations such as India and Poland in the global outsourcing industry. Thailand and Malaysia need to shed their excessive dependence on manufacturing in favor of services and indigenous resources. Businesses in most Asian countries point to an excessive regulatory burden as the biggest constraint to domestic investment. Governments must jump-start the investment cycle with true reforms—ranging from strengthening the financial sector (still not fully fixed following the 1997-98 crisis) to cutting subsidies in the utility sectors in favor of investment in human capital—rather than rely on bursts of physical pump-priming to stimulate growth.

Even in the past, when Asian growth rates were much higher, equity markets in Latin America and Eastern Europe would generate nearly comparable returns. That's because they were more efficient in the use of capital. Now growth rates in those regions exceed that of many East Asian countries, though the latter continue to demand more capital. Equity issuance in emerging Asia is likely to total nearly $80 billion this year compared with just $7 billion for Latin America. China and India account for half that sum, and their growth profiles look as solid as ever. But other developing countries in East Asia can't hope to make such demands on capital, especially when their growth outlook has dimmed. First they need to admit how far their stars have fallen—and perhaps learn a thing or two from those countries they once outshined.

Sharma is co-head of global emerging markets at Morgan Stanley Investment Management.
© 2005 Newsweek, Inc.

Blue_Sky

November 23rd, 2005, 12:15 PM

Nov 22 22:59

Bangalore, India (ANTARA News) - Ketua Umum Kamar Dagang dan Industri (Kadin) Indonesia M.S. Hidayat mengatakan sebuah perusahaan India TWS menanamkan modal sebesar 80 juta dolar AS untuk mendirikan pabrik motor di Bekasi, Jawa Barat.

"Perusahaan India tersebut telah menanamkan modal sebesar 80 juta dolar untuk membangun sepeda motor murah dengan merek Srinivasan," kata MS Hidayat di Bangalore, India, Selasa.

M.S. Hidayat berada di India untuk mendampingi Presiden Susilo Bambang Yudhoyo melakukan kunjungan kenegaraan ke negara itu, setelah sebelum juga mengikuti KTT APEC yang baru berakhir Sabtu lalu (19/11) di Busan, Korea Selatan.

Setelah berada di Bangalore satu hari, Presiden dan rombongan bertolak menuju New Delhi setelah sebelumnya mampir ke makam Taj Mahal, salah satu dari tujuh keajaiban dunia itu.

Di New Delhi, menurut Hidayat, sekitar 30 pengusaha India akan bertemu untuk membicarakan peluang bisnis dan investasi di Indonesia dengan 24 pengusaha Indonesia yang saat ini sudah berada di New Delhi.

Untuk meningkatkan iklim investasi di Tanah Air, Hidayat mengatakan pemerintah dan Kadin sepakat bahwa pada tahun 2006 pemerintah sudah harus menyelesaikan masalah empat masalah yang bisa menghambat investasi.

Keempat masalah tersebut adalah "tax reform" agar bisa kompetitif dengan para pesaing dari negara lain, undang-undang perburuhan agar direvisi agar investor dan buruh mendapatkan "win-win solution", implementasi dari pembangunan dengan mengacu pada peraturan-peraturan dari negara kompetitor, implementasi pembangunan dari infrastruktur dan diselesaikannya undang-undang investasi (investment law).

"Jika pemerintah bisa menyelesaikan keempat hal tersebut, maka pertengahan tahun 2006, implementasi proyek-proyeks sudah bisa berjalan," katanya.

Hidayat menambahkan apabila undang-undang yang dirancang semua sudah kondusif, maka ia yakin dalam lima tahun kedepan semuanya sudah bisa berjalan, karena bagaimana pun, yang akan dituju oleh pemerintah adalah pertumbuhan ekonomi.

"Pertumbuhan ekonomi tersebut hanya bisa dilakukan melalui investasi dan meningkatkan ekspor," katanya menambahkan.(*)

Berita Ekonomi (http://www.antara.co.id/seenws/?id=23043)

sanhen

November 23rd, 2005, 01:23 PM

OH NO!
More motorcycle..................................

F-ian

November 23rd, 2005, 05:43 PM

yaaaaaaaahhh

they should nolak it cuz nanti asapnya bakal sekotor Bajay!

tata

November 23rd, 2005, 05:47 PM

well guys. we need more jobs. millions of our brothers are jobless now.
we should open our doors as wide as possible for any foreign investment (but not drugs and narcotics though).

bahar

November 24th, 2005, 01:50 AM

Yea. I agree.

Alvin

December 2nd, 2005, 07:27 AM

Friday December 2, 1:07 PM
Chevron to expand geothermal project in Indonesia

JAKARTA, Dec 2 (Reuters) - Chevron Corp plans to expand its geothermal power plant project in Darajat in Indonesia's province of West Java by at least another 110 megawatts (MW), a company official said on Friday.
"We plan to expand the Darajat geothermal project to a fourth unit with capacity of at least 110 MW. We are negotiating with PLN over the price," the official, who declined to be identified, told Reuters.

The U.S. oil major, through its local unit of ChevronTexaco Energy Indonesia, is building a third phase of the geothermal power plant, which is expected to be operational by end-2006.

"Chevron is currently constructing the third geothermal power plant in Darajat with capacity of 110 MW and costing about $128 million," the official said.

Chevron already supplies electricity to state electricity company PT Perusahaan Listrik Negara (PLN) from two units of its geothermal power plant in Darajat with total capacity of 145 MW.

PLN is trying to increase electricity supply to avoid shortages in Indonesia, the world's fourth-most populous country, where power demand is estimated to be growing around 10 percent a year.

Alvin

December 5th, 2005, 03:06 PM

Starbucks Said to Buy Coffee From Aceh

JAKARTA, Indonesia — Starbucks Corp. has signed a deal to buy coffee from Indonesia's tsunami-ravaged Aceh province, a government official said Monday.

Kuntoro Mangkusubroto, the head of Aceh's official Rehabilitation and Reconstruction Agency, said Starbucks signed a deal "two weeks ago" to buy coffee from a local firm in the province.

He had no details about the agreement, including the quality of the beans, the quantity, or the marketing plans.

The Seattle-based company could not immediately be reached for comment.

The Dec. 26 tsunami killed or left missing 216,000 people in 12 countries. Aceh, which was closest to the epicenter of the 9.0 magnitude quake that spawned the killer waves, was hardest hit.

Though millions of dollars poured in to help rebuild the oil- and gas-rich province, Mangkusubroto indicated long-term development would depend on private sector initiatives.

"What I believe in is entrepreneurship," he told reporters. "That's why I was very happy that Aceh Coffee is already in agreement with Starbucks."

Indonesia is the fourth-largest coffee-bean producer in the world, but lower-quality robusta beans comprise 90 percent of the country's crop.

Aceh's fertile soil produces about 40 percent of Indonesia's premium arabica coffee beans.

Alvin

December 7th, 2005, 01:50 PM

Jakarta to promote alternative energy

(JAKARTA) The Indonesian government hopes to be able to save some 50 trillion rupiah (S$8.5 billion) in annual fuel subsidy spending in years to come by developing alternative energy sources such as coal, natural gas and bio-mass fuel, the Jakarta Post reported.

Towards this end, the government has marked out a roadmap for the increased use of alternative energy sources in the country over the next five years, and will issue the necessary regulations and provide additional funding for the relevant ministries to support the programme, the paper said.

Coordinating Minister for the Economy Aburizal Bakrie said during a hearing on Monday with the Regional Representatives Council (DPD) that such savings would be achievable due to the economic efficiency of the alternative energy sources, apart from their long-term benefits in terms of energy conservation and energy security for the whole nation.

'Such benefits for the country's fiscal position are only from the savings we will gain from reduced fuel consumption. The central government and local administrations will also benefit from additional tax revenues, royalties and dividends from the increased production of such non oil-based fuels as gas and coal,' he said.

'The use of domestic natural gas from marginal fields for electrical power generation, for example, could generate up to 400 million rupiah for the regions.' Mr Aburizal explained that the use of alternative energy was now more crucial than ever before, pointing out how losses in the power sector alone from the use of oil-based fuels amounted to 7 trillion rupiah each year.

The government has allocated 89.2 trillion rupiah for fuel subsidies this year, and 68.5 trillion rupiah for next year.

A study from the Office of the Coordinating Minister for the Economy showed that the use of 3.5 million tons of coal briquettes to replace kerosene for household use could save up to 2.45 million kiloliters of kerosene, which is the equivalent of between 7.8-11 trillion rupiah. The use of alternative fuel from coal liquification could further add to these savings, but only if it reaches an economic price when crude oil prices are at US$35 a barrel. Meanwhile, the use of bio-mass fuel - such as biodiesel - to replace just 10 per cent of fuel consumption in the transportation sector could save up to 1.2 million kiloliters of oil-based fuels, or 5.1 trillion rupiah, each year.

Alvin

December 8th, 2005, 07:13 AM

Thursday December 8, 04:30 PM

Nissan Set To Go Ahead With AUV Project In Indonesia

JAKARTA, Dec 8 Asia Pulse - PT Nissan Motor Indonesia (NMI) said it will not review its plan to produce the Asean Utility Vehicle (AUV) in the country despite the downturn in the domestic market.

Sales and Marketing Director of NMI Teddy Irawan said the company hopes to produce a new model of Multipurpose Vehicle (MPV) in 2007 with engine capacity of below 3,000 cc.

NMI has set aside US$40 million for the new model and to expand the plant's current annual production capacity of 24,000 units.

With the AUV project, the production capacity will be increased to 40,000 units a year.

(ANTARA)

David-80

December 14th, 2005, 03:03 PM

Indonesia awards 11 companies licenses to build bio-fuel plants

JAKARTA (Bloomberg): Indonesia, Southeast Asia's biggest oil producer, gave licenses to produce bio-fuel and bio-ethanol to 11 companies as the country tries to find cheaper fuel alternatives to replace its declining oil reserves.

Each plant may produce between 50,000 kiloliters and 150,000 kiloliters of bio-diesel or ethanol a year, Minister of Research and Technology Kusmayanto Kadiman said on Wednesday. Three out of the 11 investors are expected to start building ethanol plants in Lampung, southern Sumatra next year, he said.

"The plants in Lampung will turn cassava and sugar cane that have been grown in the area, into ethanol," Kadiman told reporters in Jakarta. "The others will process palm oil. One plant will cost about Rp 300 billion ($30.5 million)."

Indonesia, Southeast Asia's biggest oil consumer, wants to use more gasoline mixed with ethanol, palm oil and other vegetable oils to help reduce energy imports. Soaring oil prices and higher domestic demand are draining Indonesia's finances as the government subsidizes fuel for its 238.5 million people,threatening to scuttle the budget deficit target.

The government on Oct. 1 almost tripled kerosene prices and doubled diesel tariffs to cap subsidies at 89.2 trillion rupiah.Even with refineries running at full capacity, Indonesia must import a third of the country's fuel requirements.

President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono will order that fuels such as gasoline are mixed with 5 percent of bio-diesel or bio-ethanol from early next year, Kadiman said. The government will promote the use of bio-diesel, a mixture of diesel and palm oil, to reduce reliance on oil-based fuel as well as to reduce carbonemission, he said.

"We hope the government can also give incentives to attract companies producing more bio-fuel," he said.

Bio-diesel is made from vegetable oils obtained from crushing palm, rapeseed and soybeans, or animal fat. Ethanol can be made from cereals, sugar beet and sugar cane.

Bio-fuels, made from agricultural crops and vegetable oils, help stretch diesel and gasoline supplies when crude oil prices rise. Oil prices reached a record $70.85 a barrel on Aug. 30. Indonesia is the world's second-biggest palm oil producer afterMalaysia. (**)

Ara

December 15th, 2005, 06:11 AM

Which Indonesian company is the first in the world to create:
* Application of hologram as scratch-off protective layer.
* Application of hologram on aluminum foil for blister packs
* Modification of one-color offset machine into two-color intaglio printing machine.

Zorobabel

December 19th, 2005, 08:00 AM

Thailand to Buy 10 CN-235 Planes From Dirgantara Indonesia

BANGKOK, Dec 19 Asia Pulse - Thailand will purchase 10 CN-235 airplanes valued at US$200 to US220 million from Indonesian aircraft maker PT Dirgantara Indonesia (DI), Indonesian State Enterpises Minister Sugiharto said.

"Production of the 10 aircraft will begin in 2006 and we are trying hard not to do it under the counter-trade system," Sugiharto said here Friday night.

Sugiharto was here to accompany President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono on the later's visit to Thailand. The President concluded his visit and returned to Jakarta on Saturday.

He said Thailand would use six of the 10 aircrafts in the agricultural sector and give the rest to its military.

The minister said Indonesia was insisting on being paid for the aircraft in cash money although in the past Indonesia once delivered a number of helicopters to Thaliand in exchange for a quantity of glutinous rice.

"I think we will not be talking about counter trade now. Supplying the CN-235s to Thailand under a counter-trade deal would be quite unrealistic," Sugiharto said.

He said making the aircraft for Thailand and accepting payment in form of rice, for instance, would create a big problem for Indonesia where the recent importation of 70,000 tons of rice from Vietnam had given rise to a sharp domestic controvery.

Indonesian officials including those from PT DI had already met with their Thai counterparts in Thailand to discuss Bangkok's plan to purchase the CN-235s, he said adding that in return, Thai officials would later visit Jakarta to discuss further follow-up steps.

The Thai officials would not only visit Jakarta and Bandung where PT DI's production facilities are located but also Surabaya in East Java where Indonesia makes defense and commercial equipment.

"We already have the capability to set up a strategic industry. We are capable of producing ammunition, projectiles, torpedos and other kinds of weapons. They are marketable in Thailand," he said.

Speaking on the results of the President's talks with the chief executive officers of five giant Thai companies in Bangkok last Thursday, Sugiharto said the companies had spoken about their plans to increase the value of their investments in Indonesia.

But the Thai companies had yet to indicate by how much exactly they would expand their businesses in Indonesia.

The five Thai firms the Presdient had met were PTT PLC-PTTEO PLC, Banpu Public Co.Ltd, Charoen Pokphand Group, Siam Cement PLC and Central Retail Corporation, Ltd.

(ANTARA)

sanhen

December 19th, 2005, 08:28 AM

Alvin

January 9th, 2006, 05:13 PM

Monday January 9, 3:46 PM
Husky Energy to Boost Investment in Indonesia by US$64.3 MLN

JAKARTA, Jan 9 Asia Pulse - Husky Energy Inc. said it will increase its investment by Can$75 million (US$64.3 million) in gas explorations in Madura block, East Java this year.
The company said in a statement that the investment climate had improved significantly in the country especially in the oil and gas sector.

The Calgary based company said last year its investment in the Madura block was only Can$6 million.

In 2005, the government signed contracts with nine investors oil and gas exploration valued at US$102.5 million in 2005.

Energy and Mineral Resources Minister Purnomo Yusgiantoro said said he is optimistic the country's crude oil production will begin to scale-up to reach 1.3 million per day in the next few years.

The country's crude oil production has continued to decline in the past several year to an estimated 1.065 million per day last year.
ADVERTISEMENT

(ANTARA)

nday January 9, 3:11 PM
Chevrontexaco to Start Build 4TH Geothermal Unit in W. Java

JAKARTA, Jan 9 Asia Pulse - ChevronTexaco Energy Indonesia said it will soon start the construction of the fourth unit of the Darajat geothermal power plant in Garut, West Java.
The new unit will have a capacity of 110 megawatts to be built with an investment of US$120 million, ChevronTexaco official Irawan Munaf said.

Irwan, however, said price agreement has yet to be reached with state-owned electricity company PLN, which will buy the power it will generate.

The third unit of the plant, built at an estimated cost of US$127 million, is now in the final phase of construction. It is to be completed early this year.

(ANTARA)

Alvin

January 9th, 2006, 05:15 PM

Monday January 9, 3:13 PM
Indonesia's Textile Industry Tipped to Grow 7.5 PCT in 2006

JAKARTA, Jan 9 Asia Pulse - The country's textile industry is projected to grow by 7.5 per cent this year as against last year's estimated growth of less than 2 per cent.
The relatively high growth is estimated given an expected increase in demand from the United States and the European Union. Ansari Bukhari, the director general of metal, machinery, textile and multifarious industries, said he is optimistic that target will be achieved.

Last year's growth target was set at 5 per cent but reached less than 2 per cent.

Anasari acknowledged the target was too optimistic but he said the market conditions are now favorable and are expected to continue until the end of this year.

Earlier the Indonesian Textile Association (API) predicted that the country's exports of textiles and garments will reach US$8.35 billion in 2006, up from an estimated US$7.5 billion in 2005.

API is optimistic that the country's textile exports would continue to increase under the Asean free trade area (AFTA) scheme.
ADVERTISEMENT

Exports are expected to rise further to US$14 billion in 2010 when free trade area will expand under the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) agreement, API chairman Benny Sutrisno said.

The target includes US$8 billion from garment exports US$3 billion from the exports of spun yarns and another US$3 billion from the exports of woven and knitted fabric and finished wear, Benny said.

(ANTARA)

Alvin

January 11th, 2006, 05:12 AM

Govt seeks help for textile industry
The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

In a bid to help the country's ailing textile companies, the Ministry of Industry will lobby the central bank to push banks to provide loans to revamp aging textile machinery, a minister said.

"We will meet on Wednesday (today) to discuss possible loans. Hopefully, BI (Bank Indonesia) can help assure local banks," Minister of Industry Fahmi Idris said after a meeting with business associations last week.

The loans would be prioritized for 69 textile companies in West Java that are on the brink of collapse, he added.

Indonesian Textile Association (API) chairman Benny Soetrisno estimated that the companies would need US$3.6 billion to replace their aging machinery.

The industry ministry reported that around half of the machinery operated by Indonesian textile companies was already more than 15 years of age.

Old machinery has resulted in inefficiency for textile companies, thus lowering their competitiveness in the global market particularly when competing with producers from China.

Benny, however, explained that the ailing textile companies would not be able to carry the burden of the high interest rate set at 14 percent by the local banks, as well as the 80 percent required down payment.

The industry ministry estimated that the textile industry would require a $5 billion investment to revamp the whole production facilities.

Such a large amount would need the support of the banking sector, which currently is still reluctant to give loans to textile companies as they are considered a sunset industry.

Data from API reveals that 77 companies have stopped operating, leaving around 70,000 textile and garment workers jobless.

The textile and garment industry, along with leather and footwear, grew below the industry ministry's target last year of 4.2 percent.

In its yearly prognosis, the ministry reported that 2005 full-year growth of the industry only reached 1.5 percent, although textile exports, which amounted to $7.7 billion, were the second largest contributor to Indonesia's total non-oil and gas exports.

Rising energy costs, soaring textile and garment imports as well as aging machinery contributed to the industry's poor performance.

This year, the textile and garment industry is expected to grow by 4.3 percent on additional export market potential in the United States and European Union countries which have limited imports from China.

Zorobabel

January 12th, 2006, 10:26 AM

This comes after automobile makers went to the government seaking a new automobile terminal because they intend to make Indonesia an export hub for all of SE Asia.

---

Indonesia Pledges to Start Automotive Terminal Project
JAKARTA, Jan 12 Asia Pulse - Industry Minister Fahmi Idris said the Indonesian government is interested in having a plan to build a special automotive terminal in Tanjung Priok implemented immediately.

Construction of a car port with a capacity of accommodating up to 20,000 cars will start soon, Idris said.

Idris said an investor is available to carry out the project, which also includes supporting facilities such as a flyover.

Transport Equipment and Information Technology director general Budi Darmadi said the project will involve a number of government agencies.

Darmadi said the project would be built by a consortium, adding the location of the project in Tanjung Priok had yet to be determined.

(ANTARA)

Alvin

January 12th, 2006, 12:04 PM

This comes after automobile makers went to the government seaking a new automobile terminal because they intend to make Indonesia an export hub for all of SE Asia.

Really? My impression is that Thailand and Malaysia are well ahead of Indonesia for that title.

sanhen

January 12th, 2006, 01:06 PM

Yeah, thats the impression. But I think Indonesia have a better future with its 210+ million population.

Zorobabel

January 12th, 2006, 06:53 PM

I'm sure they are ahead currently. The terminal is supposed to have the capacity to export as many as 900,000 automobiles annually.

Alvin

January 13th, 2006, 11:29 AM

January, 05 2006 @ 05:15 am
Forestry Minister Predicts End To Illegal Logging

Forestry Minister M.S. Kaban says his ministry and related agencies are hopeful of eradicating illegal logging activities by 2009. That's about the same time that environmentalists are predicting much of Indonesia's remaining lowland forests will disappear if illegal logging is not stopped.
The key to Kaban's ambitious plan is the creation of an elite unit of rangers trained to confront illegal loggers: the Quick Reaction Forest Rangers Special Unit (Satuan Khusus Polisi Kehutanan Reaksi Cepat - SPORC).
"Various endeavors are being carried out, including training for SPORC personnel in cooperation with the Police and the Navy," Kaban was quoted as saying Wednesday (4/1/06) by state news agency Antara.
He was speaking at the inauguration ceremony of 299 SPORC personnel at Pelabuhan Ratu in Sukabumi district, West Java province.
The Forestry Ministry aims to train a total of 1,500 SPORC personnel over the next four years and will assign them to regions prone to illegal logging.
Most of the first 299 SPORC personnel were recruited from existing forest rangers and they underwent 38 days of special training in shooting, self defense and ambush skills.
Kaban said Indonesia loses around Rp30 trillion (about $3 billion) annually in revenue from illegal logging activities involving a total volume of 1 million cubic meters of timber.
He claimed the volume of illegally logged timber had decreased up to 80% after the government declared war on illegal logging a year ago.
Deforestation has reached around 2.8 million hectares annually, mainly to illegal logging, he added.
He said 59.2 million hectares of the country's 120.35 million hectares of forests were in a critical condition.
President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono has vowed to combat rampant illegal logging by punishing civil servants and members of the security forces involved in the trade.
Environmentalists say corruption and collusion between the military, police, state prosecutors and the courts are the main reasons why illegal logging bosses go unpunished in Indonesia.
$9 Billion Contribution
Kaban last month predicted the forestry sector would contribute annual foreign exchange earnings of $9 billion if illegal logging activities could be stopped and timber companies could improve their efficiency.
"The country's foreign exchange earnings from the forestry sector stands at around $7.8 billion per year," he said after awarding certificates to 14 timber processing companies on December 15.
He said the major obstacles facing the forestry sector included illegal logging, old machinery used by timber processing companies and inefficiencies in running timber companies.
"Those factors have made our domestic companies unable to compete with their counterparts from China, Malaysia, Canada," he said.
An inter-departmental government team last year began drafting a law on illegal logging. The legislation is expected to be passed on to parliament for deliberation some time this year.
After being placed in charge of the Forestry Ministry in October 2004, Kaban revoked a proposed government regulation that was designed to stop the rapid destruction of the nation’s forests.
The draft regulation in lieu of law (perpu) would have meted out severe penalties to illegal loggers, while anyone financing illegal logging would have faced the death sentence or life imprisonment.
International conservation body Greenpeace says Indonesia has the highest level of deforestation in the world and warns that most of the country’s lowland forests may disappear by 2010 if illegal logging is not curbed.
Critics say the Indonesian Defense Forces, which receives only 30% of its required budget from the government, is involved in illegal logging to help make up the shortfall.
Illegal logging exacerbates potentially deadly natural disasters, such as floods and landslides, and is also killing many of Indonesia's endangered animal species, such as Sumatran tigers and orangutans.

F-ian

January 13th, 2006, 12:54 PM

At last... we should have Ranger posts and have snipers shoot anyone ileagal logging

Alvin

January 20th, 2006, 06:28 PM

Indonesia's Mining Prospects Good,But Investments Low-PWC

Friday January 20, 2006, 4:50 pm

DJ Indonesia's Mining Prospects Good,But Investments Low-PWC

JAKARTA (Dow Jones)--The Indonesian mining sector is perceived to be highly prospective, but global mining companies deem the country's investment conditions to be poor relative to other countries, PriceWaterHouseCoopers said Friday.

Although there has been a significant increase in global exploration spending, exploration spending in Indonesia remains at low levels, PWC said in its latest publication on the Indonesian mining industry.

In 2004, exploration spending in Indonesia accounted for less than 1.5% of the global budgeted spending of $3.8 billion, which was up 58% from 2003, PWC said, citing data from Canada's Metal Economics Group.

"In Indonesia, the low level of exploration activity is a cause for concern as the long term success of the industry...depends on continued exploration," said Ray Headifen, one of the editors of the report.

"If positive changes are not made, then Indonesia's mining industry may be smaller in 15 years' time as reserves are depleted and not replaced," Headifen added.

The recent downtrend in exploration activity can be attributed to the country's lack of legal certainty, security concerns in some remote parts with good mining prospects, and rampant illegal mining, mining companies and analysts said.

These negative factors outweigh the allure of the country's rich mineral resources, analysts added.

The government and parliament have been engaged in a long discussion on a new mining law, and the draft of the mining bill hasn't been well received by foreign mining companies, PWC said.

These mining companies have withheld investments pending confirmation on the terms and date of implementation of the new law.

Of particular concern is the government's plan to abolish the current "contract of work" mining licensing system. If the system is abolished, new investments would have to be via joint-venture arrangements with state-owned mining companies instead, or via mining licenses obtained directly from the regional governments, it said.

Simon Sembiring, the Director General of Mines at the Mines and Energy Ministry said the government is "willing to listen" to investors' concerns in discussing the bill with parliament, but didn't elaborate.

However, the profitability of Indonesian mines compares favorably with other countries, PWC said.

In 2004, the average net profit margin of mining companies in Indonesia was 19.3%, compared with 15.2% for the top 40 companies globally. Similarly, returns on shareholders' funds was 27.3%, compared with 18.9% for the top 40 companies globally.

A handful of global mining companies have large investments in Indonesia, including Freeport-McMoRan Copper & Gold Inc. (FCX), and Newmont Mining Corp. (NEM).

-By I Made Sentana; Dow Jones Newswires; 62-21 39831277; I-Made.Sentana@dowjones.com

Alvin

January 24th, 2006, 12:55 AM

Indonesia's hunger for power may eat into coal exports
Jan 24
Bloomberg

Indonesia - which led a surge in global coal production last year - may cut shipments in 2007 because of increased domestic demand as it builds power plants to ease an electricity shortage.

The country might export 5per cent less than the 122million tonnes forecast this year, the chairman of Indonesia's Coal Mining Association, Jeffrey Mulyono, said.

"Producers are going to be supplying more to the domestic market, where demand is surging because three new power plants are starting up this year," Mr Mulyono said. "Local consumption may reach 35per cent of total output next year compared with 30per cent this year."

Japanese power generators might have to pay higher prices for Indonesian coal next year to secure supplies, he said.

Indonesia has doubled shipments since 2000 and last year overtook Australia to become the world's biggest coal exporter to utilities. BHP Billiton, Rio Tinto Group and other coal producers in Indonesia, Australia and South Africa increased spending to expand their mines after coal prices soared in 2005, led by China's rising consumption. Demand for coal gained as crude oil and natural gas prices rose to records.

Coal prices in Asia may fall almost 20per cent to less than $US45a tonne this year because of increased shipments. Indonesia exports its coal to Japan, South Korea, Taiwan, Hong Kong and Europe.

The country's coal consumption grew about 5per cent last year. Demand could rise 20per cent over the next 18 months, the government has forecast.

The country's largest producer, PT Bumi Resources, has not decided whether to cut exports as it is in talks with local buyers to increase supplies.

Alvin

January 28th, 2006, 06:21 AM

Japanese car giants set to rev up in Indonesia
Rendi Akhmad Witular, The Jakarta Post, Kerawang, West Java

A number of Japanese automotive companies are mulling new investments in Indonesia as part of plans to turn the country into a production base for the regional market.

Industry Minister Fahmi Idris said Friday that Toyota Motor Corp., Mitsubishi Motors Corp., Daihatsu Motor Corp., Honda Motorcycle and Yamaha Motor Corp. were set to upscale their operations in Indonesia in the near future.

"During my recent visit to Japan, these companies told me they intended to invest more in Indonesia and to make the country one of their production bases," said Fahmi in a speech delivered during the opening of a new Yamaha motorcycle factory here.

The ceremony was also attended by President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono.

Fahmi said Toyota would invest around US$180 million and Mitsubishi about $50 million this year to boost their Indonesian production capacities.

Toyota Motor Manufacturing Indonesia spokesman Irwan Priyantoko confirmed to The Jakarta Post that Toyota Group, which also includes Daihatsu, would increase its investment in Indonesia this year. However, the actual figures involved were still unclear.

"Toyota Group plans to increase its investment here to expand production capacity for our multipurpose Toyota Avanza and Daihatsu Xenia lines. But I don't know exactly how much the investment will come to as yet," said Irwan.

Officials from Mitsubishi could not be immediately reached for confirmation.

Japanese automotive companies are attracted to the Indonesia market due to the existence of sufficient domestic demand to provide them with the necessary economies of scale.

Car sales this year are expected to come in at between 450,000 and 500,000, lower than the 534,000 sold last year as higher interest rates begin to bite. However, many analysts believe that next year's sales could hit a new record.

Motorcycle sales this year are expected to hit a new record of more than five million compared to around 4.6 million last year, making Indonesia the world's third largest motorcycle market after China and India.

Meanwhile, the president director of PT Yamaha Motor Manufacturing West Java, Yoshiteru Takahashi, said during the opening ceremony that his company had invested around $70 million on building its new plant, which could produce 600,000 motorcycles annually.

With the new facility, the company hopes to produce a total of 1.9 million motorcycles this year compared to 1.23 million last year, making it Yamaha's largest production base outside Japan.