Infrastructures needs $17b in new investments

Infrastructures needs $17b in new investments

JAKARTA (JP): The government yesterday invited further private
investment in clean water supply, toll roads and transportation
infrastructure projects.

Minister of Public Works Radinal Moochtar and Minister of
Transportation Haryanto Dhanutirto revealed yesterday that new
investments of US$17.1 billion in the three above sectors are
open for private participation for the next five years.

Speaking at the Indonesia Summit 1996, an international
economic seminar on Indonesia, Radinal said his office has
identified 48 cities looking for private sector investment in
their water supply infrastructure.

"The Ministry of Public Works is committed to supporting
private sector participation in water supply and will consider
appropriate support for each investment project on its merits,"
Radinal said.

He estimated that the required investment in the water supply
in the 48 cities over the next five years stands at some $4
billion.

He explained that private investment in water supply could
range from concessionaire contracts for operation to joint
venture capital investment for a build-operate-transfer or build-
operate-own scheme.

The clean water supply business in most cities is currently
run by local government-owned enterprises. There are some 300
local government water supply firms across the country.

Radinal said his ministry shares a responsibility to provide
some of the headworks for the development of water sources,
treatment plants and, to a lesser degree, the transmission mains.

He added that his office is committed to providing additional
infrastructure with a combined capacity of 30,000 liters of water
per second to urban centers during the next five years, which
will need an additional investment of $1.3 billion.

"The rapid growth rate of urbanization is increasing the
demand for urban water supply," Radinal said.

In addition to water supply, the Ministry of Public Works has
also identified 541 kilometers of toll road projects to be
offered to the private sector.

He did not elaborate on the projects but said that they are in
Java, Sumatra and Sulawesi.

He said the government expected investment in the toll road
sector for the current sixth five year-development plan, which
started in 1994, to total $4.2 billion.

In the past two years to March 1996, the construction of 53
kilometers of toll roads has been completed, while 235 kilometers
is still under construction.

Contracts for the construction of another 229 kilometers were
awarded in March, Radinal said.

Meanwhile, Minister Haryanto noted that transportation
infrastructure, excluding roads and vehicles, need a total
investment of $13.7 billion, of which $8.9 billion is expected
from the private sector.

By April 1996, the government had received 43 proposals for
transportation infrastructure projects under joint operation or
joint venture schemes with state-owned firms. The investments for
these totaled $3.5 billion.

The government has so far approved 10 proposals with total
investments of $1.2 billion. They include the construction and
management of the third container terminal at Tanjung Priok port
in Jakarta, the development of dry-bulk facilities at Tanjung
Perak port in Surabaya, East Java, and calibration for air
navigation.

Haryanto said his ministry is currently processing other
private investment projects, including those on mass rapid
transit facilities for urban transportation in Jakarta, the
Manggarai integrated terminal also in Jakarta, Jakarta-Surabaya
express trains and new airports in Medan, North Sumatra, and in
Lombok, West Nusa Tenggara. (rid)