Volkswagen, Europe’s biggest automaker, plans to build a factory in Indonesia by the end of this year at the latest, Industry Minister M.S. Hidayat said. “I had a talk with them [Volkswagen] about their plan. They already have a blueprint for the project,” Hidayat said after attending the Asean-European Union business summit at the Jakarta Convention Center on Thursday.

The chief of the Overseas Private Investment Corporation has urged US companies to cast their gaze outside of Java Island to tap the growing potential of Indonesia’s outlying regions. “Be patient, be persistent and aim for long-term partnerships,” OPIC president and chief executive Elizabeth Littlefield said at the close of a two-day conference in Jakarta on Thursday.