Batam Aircraft Maintenance delays project<\/p>\n
JAKARTA (JP): Batam Aircraft Maintenance, an aircraft
\nmaintenance facility jointly owned by Indonesian and Singaporean
\nparties, has decided to delay launching its operations until the
\nend of this year from the original schedule slated for this
\nmonth.<\/p>\n
An executive of the project, Suyatim A. Habibie, told The
\nJakarta Post that the operation of the US$10 million project has
\nbeen delayed for technical reasons.<\/p>\n
\"We have rescheduled the project's development, especially the
\napron construction. But we don't have any financial problems.
\nEverything is under control,\" he said.<\/p>\n
Habibie, popularly called Timmi, refused to give more details
\non the project.<\/p>\n
The agreement to establish Batam Aircraft Maintenance was
\nsigned in September 1994 by four Indonesian parties and a
\nSingaporean company.<\/p>\n
The Indonesian parties include the state-owned aircraft
\nmanufacturer PT IPTN, which is controlled by Minister for
\nResearch and Technology B.J. Habibie, a brother of Timmi (with a
\n25-percent ownership); the YASAU foundation of the Air Force (20
\npercent) and Sempati Air (20 percent), a private airline owned by
\nseveral parties including businessman Mohammad (Bob) Hasan and
\nPresident Soeharto's youngest son Hutomo Mandala Putra.<\/p>\n
The other Indonesian shareholder is PT Saltim Mitra
\nCorporation (with an ownership of 10 percent), a joint venture
\nbetween Liem Sioe Liong's Salim Group and Timmi's Timsco Group,
\nwhile the Singaporean shareholder is Singapore Aerospace (25
\npercent), an affiliate of the Singapore Technologies Holdings.<\/p>\n
The idea for the establishment of Batam Aircraft Maintenance
\nwas initiated in late 1991, while its agreement was signed three
\nyears later after tough negotiations.<\/p>\n
The project, now under construction on a 2.5-hectare area,
\nwill cover a plot of up to five hectares with an investment of
\nabout $30 million.<\/p>\n
The 415-square-kilometer island of Batam, which is situated
\nsome 20 kilometers southeast of Singapore, has been developed
\nsince early the 1970s as an industrial and tourism center. The
\nHang Nadim airport on the island's east coast has just been
\nexpanded as an international gateway with a 4,000-meter runway to
\nserve both scheduled and chartered passenger and cargo flights
\nwith jumbo jets.<\/p>\n
However, analysts said that it will be hard for the Hang Nadim
\nairport to compete with Singapore's Changi Airport as an
\ninternational transport hub because the flow of goods and
\npassengers at the former is still low. (icn)<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/batam-aircraft-maintenance-delays-project-1447893297",
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