Chinese loan to buy buses falls through
Chinese loan to buy buses falls through
JAKARTA (JP): The city administration has failed to clinch a
soft loan from the Chinese government for the purchase of new
buses from the country but will still buy Chinese buses under a
new scheme, Governor Sutiyoso said on Friday.
"We attempted to secure the Chinese soft loan but to no avail
and now there is a consortium.
"I hope everything will go smoothly with this new scheme," the
governor told reporters at City Hall.
Sutiyoso said a consortium willing to provide bank guarantees
had already been formed to procure new buses from China.
New buses are urgently needed to replace the city's aging and
rapidly deteriorating fleet.
"The consortium allows the bus operators to pay only 20
percent of the cost of a bus. Bank guarantees will take care of
the remaining amount," he said.
"I want a more representative public bus armada in the city. I
hope the consortium will be able to fulfill this. We'll buy the
buses from China," he added.
The governor, however, failed to name the consortium or the
bank or banks participating in the scheme.
In May, the Chinese government offered a soft loan to the city
administration via the State Ministry of Cooperatives, Small and
Medium Enterprises for the purchase of the buses.
It has also been reported that the city administration had
prepared a bus replacement program worth more than Rp 1.5
trillion (US$166,666,000) using the soft loan.
No explanation
Sutiyoso did not say which party had canceled the soft loan,
nor did he give a reason.
But the governor insisted that Jakarta would keep to its word
and purchase buses from Beijing.
"We'll still buy buses from China because of their good
quality and low price. As for the old buses, we'll sell them out
of town," he said.
The Chinese buses will cost the administration Rp 250 million
for a large one and Rp 160 million for a minibus. The buses are
more environmentally friendly than Jakarta's current buses as
they use liquefied gas instead of gasoline or diesel.
The governor said he would hold a meeting with the consortium,
the head of the City Traffic and Land Transport Agency, Buyung
Atang, and chairman of Jakarta chapter of the Organization of
Land Transportation Owners (Organda) Aip Syarifuddin about the
matter soon.
Sutiyoso hoped the new buses could be designed like the
vehicles used at airports to transport passengers to or from
planes.
"There are seats only around the edges in the shape of a ring,
which are designated for pregnant women and old people. Other
passengers stand," he said.
"This way, we can carry more passengers and impose cheaper
fares," added Sutiyoso.
Timor
Buyung told The Jakarta Post that his agency had received
requests from several taxi companies in Jakarta to replace their
vehicles with Timor sedans.
"I don't know yet the number of taxis to be replaced because
the companies have yet to submit detailed plans," he said.
"The problem is that PT Timor Putra Nusantara (TPN) has never
allowed its Timor sedans to be used as taxis," he said, before
adding that this situation had changed lately.
Buyung pointed to several taxi companies that were using Timor
sedans.
"Perhaps the change of mind (by TPN) is also due to the fact
that it is under the Indonesian Bank Restructuring Agency (IBRA)
for its unsettled debts," he said.
"As soon as TPN solves its problems with IBRA, my agency can
immediately give licenses for old taxis to be replaced with Timor
sedans," added Buyung. (nvn)