IPTN to establish joint venture to finance N-2130 jet

JAKARTA (JP): State-owned aircraft manufacturer PT IPTN will form a joint-venture company to finance the development of its N- 2130 aircraft, a 130-seat passenger jet.

State Minister for Research and Technology B.J. Habibie, who is also the president of IPTN, made the announcement yesterday. He added that the joint venture company will issue shares to the public to raise funds for the N-2130 project.

"In line with President Soeharto's directive, we will finance this project with equity funds from IPTN itself and capital to be raised through the sale of shares in the joint-venture company," he said during a hearing with the Research and Technology Commission of the House of Representatives.

Soeharto told journalists after witnessing the successful maiden flight last month of the N-250 turboprop -- the first wholly Indonesian-made aircraft -- that funding for the N-2130 project would not come out of the state budget.

Responding to Soeharto's comment, industry and transportation ministers said recently that state-owned companies under their supervision were ready to help finance the development of the N- 2130 jet.

The N-2130, the prototype of which is expected to be ready for its first flight in August 2003, will require at least US$2 billion for its design, engineering and manufacture.

"That's an initial estimate. However, according to the experiences of international aerospace companies and IPTN, any changes in components or the structure of a new aircraft results in higher development costs," Habibie said.

IPTN, which is based in Bandung, West Java, already assembles and produces parts for fixed-wing aircraft, such as the C-212 and CN-235, as well as helicopters like the NBO-105, the NAS-332, the Bell 412 and the Superpuma.

Habibie added that the N-2130 project will be supervised by his eldest son Ilham Akbar Habibie.

"The production of the N-2130 is expected to fulfill the market demand for jet aircraft," he said, adding that the N-2130 project team has been conducting a preliminary study.

He said recently that the world demand for aircraft with 80 to 130 seats is projected to be 2,757 units between 1995 and 2015. The N-2130's rivals will include the Dutch-made Fokker F-70 and F-100, Britain's BAe-146s and the American Boeing-737-300.

Habibie said IPTN will produce three types of N-2130: one with 80 seats, another with 100 seats and the third with 130 seats. The aircraft will be able to fly at a speed of 232 kilometers (125 knots) per hour with a maximum cruising altitude of 11,890 meters (39,000 feet). (31)

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