Indonesia’s state port firm will start building a new container terminal in Jakarta this year to cope with overflowing volumes at the main shipment hub in Indonesia’s capital as trade grows.
The first phase of the 22tn rupiah ($2.45bn) project is expected to be completed in two years, with funds coming from domestic and foreign firms as investor interest grows in developing infrastructure in Southeast Asia’s biggest economy.
The terminal project is part of a government plan to expand Jakarta’s main Tanjung Priok port as it seeks to overhaul infrastructure and attract further long-term foreign direct investment – a move which would put government finances on a more stable footing.
“Tanjung Priok’s volume at this moment is nearly congested, very high, so if we are not ready within two years, it will be a big problem,” said Richard Lino, president director of state port operator PT Pelabuhan Indonesia (Pelindo) II.
The first phase will have a capacity of 1.5mn 20-foot containers (TEU), with Lino aiming to finish the full port in the next five to six years.