JAKARTA (JP): Taiwan considers Indonesia one of the best places for

JAKARTA (JP): Taiwan considers Indonesia one of the best places for
investment in Asia, especially since the Indonesian government
has promised more deregulations in the near future to ease
foreign investment procedures.

Chairman of a delegation of Taiwanese businessmen, Tai-Ying
Liu, who met with Indonesian businessmen yesterday, told The
Jakarta Post that the promised deregulation measures have been an
important factor in increasing Taiwanese entrepreneurs' interest
in the country.

"Therefore, although there may be some infrastructural
problems, such as shortages of power supply, transportation and
communications, I am convinced they can all be solved," he said.

In fact, he added, Taiwanese businessmen were also considering
investing in infrastructure projects in Indonesia.

"Indonesia offers the advantage of low-cost labor and abundant
natural resources such as land," Liu said.

According to Liu, Taiwan is currently facing a shortage of
labor, and labor costs in that country are about 10 times higher
than they are here.

Liu also considered the Indonesian government's free foreign
exchange system as an additional incentive to prospective investors.

He said that the investment climate in Indonesia is better
than that in the Philippines, mainly because labor wages and land
prices in that country were higher.

"Although Indonesia's investment climate is similar to that in
mainland China and Vietnam, they are not comparable. During the last
five years, we have already invested more than US$10 billion in
mainland China and we have just started to invest $2 billion in
Vietnam," he said.

Politics

Liu, who is also president of the Taiwan Research Institute,
said that due to political constraints, many Taiwanese firms shun
investing in mainland China. "That is why we have come to seek
opportunities here," he said.

Taiwan is particularly interested in investing in up-stream
petrochemical industries, as well as in steel, cement, sugar and
fertilizer production.

"Our total investment commitments here are about $5 billion
and, I think, within the next three to five years the figure will
double," Liu said.

"We are currently looking for a suitable industrial estate for
the relocation of our industrial plants," he said.

Sugihono Kadarisman of the Foreign Promotion Bureau at the
Investment Coordinating Board said that Taiwan is Indonesia's number
one priority as a source of foreign investment.

"They have the funds and are also familiar with the way we work,"
he said.

During the meeting, Sugihono specifically invited them to invest in
power generation, agroindustry and tourism.

"Indonesia still needs at least an additional 23,000 megawatts
of electricity, of which 10,000 megawatts are expected to be
supplied by the private sector since the government's funding is
very limited," he said. (10)