Govt to put port, airport projects out to tender soon<\/p>\n
Rendi A. Witular, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta<\/p>\n
As a follow up to January's Infrastructure Summit, the Ministry
\nof Transportation will start the tender processes in March and
\nApril for three projects worth over Rp 8 trillion (US$864.9
\nmillion).<\/p>\n
The projects are a new port in Jakarta, a new airport in the
\nNorth Sumatra capital of Medan and the expanding of Soekarno-
\nHatta International Airport in Cengkareng, which also includes
\nthe development of cargo handling facilities and a rail link.<\/p>\n
\"These tenders represent the next step after the
\nInfrastructure Summit last month,\" Minister Hatta Radjasa told a
\npress conference on Wednesday after a meeting with Vice President
\nJusuf Kalla.<\/p>\n
Port and airport projects are among the government's top
\npriorities for upgrading the country's woefully inadequate
\ninfrastructure. During the two-day summit on Jan. 17 and Jan. 18,
\nthe government offered 91 infrastructure projects worth US$22.5
\nbillion to domestic and overseas investors.<\/p>\n
Hatta said the projects were necessary to reduce congestion in
\nthe distribution chain, which significantly increased the cost of
\ndoing business here.<\/p>\n
The minister acknowledged the existence of a dispute
\nsurrounding the Jakarta New Port project, also known as the East
\nAncol Seaport project. Therefore, Hatta said, the ministry would
\nimmediately call upon the parties involved to settle their
\ndifferences amicably and to jointly develop the project as soon
\nas possible.<\/p>\n
The dispute involves port operator PT Pelindo II and the
\nJakarta administration, and concerns who has the authority to
\nmanage ports in the capital. The city administration bases its
\narguments on the Local Autonomy Law, which contradicts other
\nlegislation stipulating that Pelindo has the sole authority to
\nmanage ports nationwide.<\/p>\n
\"I have urged Pelindo and the administration to set up a joint
\nventure to develop the port in order to resolve this problem. The
\ngovernment needs the project to be completed as expeditiously as
\npossible,\" said Hatta.<\/p>\n
It is estimated that the new port will cost around Rp 4.4
\ntrillion, with the first phase involving the construction of
\nfacilities for handling automotive products.<\/p>\n
The second key project is a Rp 2.71 trillion scheme to expand
\nthe capacity of Soekarno-Hatta airport -- which includes the
\nexpansion of Terminal I (domestic flights) at a cost of some Rp
\n1.6 trillion -- a Rp 430 billion development of cargo handling
\nfacilities, and the construction of a railway connecting the
\nairport to Kalideres bus terminal at a cost of Rp 675 billion.<\/p>\n
The third project is the construction of a new airport in
\nMedan. It is expected that the new airport -- which will replace
\nthe existing Polonia airport -- will cost Rp 2.3 trillion.<\/p>\n
The government has decided not to upgrade Polonia airport due
\nto its location at the heart of Medan, the country's third
\nlargest city.<\/p>\n
The new airport is expected not only to support economic
\ngrowth in North Sumatra but also to serve as a catalyst for
\nenhanced economic cooperation between Indonesia, Malaysia and
\nThailand in what is referred to as a growth triangle.<\/p>",
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