Hutchison still committed to RI despite criticism<\/p>\n
Rendi A. Witular, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta<\/p>\n
Hong Kong-based seaport operator Hutchison Port Holdings Group
\nsaid it was still committed to developing the seaport in Tanjung
\nPriok in North Jakarta owned by its subsidiary PT Jakarta
\nInternational Container Terminal (JICT) into a regional shipping
\nhub.<\/p>\n
Managing Director of Hutchison John Meredith told The Jakarta
\nPost on Monday that the commitment was still in place despite
\ncriticism by a senior governmental official who recently accused
\nthe company of failing to deliver on its promise to develop JICT.<\/p>\n
Meredith said such an accusation had resulted from a lack of
\nunderstanding about the port management.<\/p>\n
\"The problem is that they (the official) haven't really
\nunderstood what we're doing here. JICT is under construction and
\ntherefore, until it's finished they can't really say we haven't
\ndone what we are supposed to do,\" said Meredith.<\/p>\n
Meredith was speaking on the sidelines of an official
\nlaunching ceremony of a new 513-meter deepwater quay which would
\nlink JICT facilities with the adjacent Koja Container Terminal.<\/p>\n
JICT is 51 percent owned by Hutchison with another 48.9
\npercent held by state-owned Pelindo II and the remaining shares
\nby the company's employee cooperative. Pelindo is also the
\nmajority shareholder of Koja Container Terminal.<\/p>\n
Hutchison bought the 51 percent stake from the government in
\n1999 for US$215 million.<\/p>\n
Under the 1999 deal, Hutchison promised to invest $340 million
\nover a period of 20 years. However, last week, Ferdinand
\nNainggolan, a deputy at the State Ministry of State Enterprise,
\naccused Hutchison of failing to make the investment as pledged in
\nthe 1999 deal.<\/p>\n
For instance, he said Hutchison had promised to invest $28
\nmillion in information technology by 2001 but the company had yet
\nto realize the investment.<\/p>\n
However, the company denied Ferdinand's allegation, saying it
\nhad thus far invested up to $400 million in the port.<\/p>\n
According to Ferdinand, although JICT is now controlled by
\nHutchison, the government still had the so-called \"golden share\",
\nwhich gives it the right to annul the divestment and buy back the
\nshares.<\/p>\n
Ferdinand warned that the government would exercise that
\nright, unless Hutchison complied with the 1999 deal.<\/p>\n
Meredith said the investment issue was one of several problems
\nconfronting Hutchison in operating JICT.<\/p>\n
He suspected that the problems were being orchestrated by
\ncertain competitors in the region who did not want to see
\nHutchison develop an international shipping hub in Indonesia.<\/p>\n
\"They (the competitors) will miss the transshipment business
\nfrom this country. If our activities can be stopped they would be
\nvery happy,\" said Meredith.<\/p>\n
He did not mention the competitors but Singapore and Malaysia
\nare known as shipping hubs in the region.<\/p>\n
Turning JICT into a full-service international seaport will
\nhelp Indonesian exporters save time and money as cargo can be
\nshipped from the port directly to overseas destinations without
\nstopping over in Singapore or Malaysian ports.<\/p>\n
Currently, 75 percent of ships carrying goods from Indonesia
\nhave to stop over in Singaporean and Malaysian ports, where the
\ngoods must be reloaded onto larger vessels which Indonesian ports
\nare unable to accommodate.<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/hutchison-still-committed-to-ri-despite-criticism-1447893297",
"image": ""
},
"sponsor": "Okusi Associates",
"sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com"
}