JAKARTA -(Dow Jones)- Indonesia's finance ministry is considering proposals to remove the value-added tax on imported catalysts for refineries, tax on capital goods imports for refineries and providing loan guarantees to refinery developers, the Ministry of Energy and Mineral Resources said in a statement on its Web site Monday. The proposals, if approved, are expected to encourage both local and foreign investors to build refineries in Indonesia.

Indonesia will launch a new system of independent certification for all timber exports to combat widespread illegal logging, the forestry minister said Monday. From September all timber leaving the country must be certified by an independent body of business and NGO representatives, Malam Sambat Kaban told reporters.

TEMPO Interactive, Jakarta: The government will not review the implementation of the free trade zones (FTZ) in Batam, Bintan, and Karimun again as they are important to increase foreign investment in the area. “The zones are to raise their economic production,” the Trade Minister, Mari Elka Pangestu, told Tempo when observing Glodok Market, in Jakarta, last Saturday. Mari explained that the FTZ implementation cannot be canceled because of concerns of smuggling.

A new regulation which lays down a one-stop service for the processing of investment licenses is a step forward in making Indonesia more attractive, but it also has some potential to spark conflicts.

It is high time for the domestic dairy industry to put an end the domination of imported milk products by improving its productivity, efficiency and quality, a senior official at the National Dairy Council said on Thursday.