Jumbo Incentives at JIIPE Attract Global Investors to Indonesia
The Indonesian government continues to strengthen investment attractiveness in the country, one of which is through the development of Special Economic Zones (SEZs). Unlike general industrial zones, SEZs are designed with various privileges, including the provision of fiscal and non-fiscal incentives to attract investor interest.
However, the success of SEZs does not solely depend on government policies. Business actors are also required to provide added value. PT AKR Corporindo Tbk (AKRA) serves as one example. Since 2021, the company has officially managed the Java Integrated Industrial and Ports Estate (JIIPE) SEZ in Gresik, East Java, through a partnership with Pelindo.
Director & Corporate Secretary of AKR Corporindo, Suresh Vembu, explained that they have prepared various incentives to attract investors, both domestic and foreign. From the fiscal side, for instance, there are quite significant tax reliefs.
“Several of our tenants have obtained corporate tax exemptions for 10 to 20 years,” he stated during a public presentation in September 2025.
In addition, AKR also provides non-fiscal incentives, such as ease of starting construction, acceleration of environmental permits, exemption from import duties, ease of foreign worker permits, relaxation of export-import for certain commodities, and building use rights (HGB) that can reach 80 years.
Spanning 3,000 hectares, the JIIPE zone includes 1,761 hectares of industrial area and 400 hectares of deep-sea port. The integration between the industrial zone and port is one of the main advantages offered.
These various incentives have proven to attract global investor interest. Several major companies from China, the United States, and Japan are operating in this zone. One of them is the copper smelter owned by PT Freeport Indonesia, which is claimed to be the world’s largest single-line facility. In addition to strengthening the national copper industry, this smelter can also produce up to 52 tonnes of gold per year from anode slime processing.
Additionally, Xinyi Glass is building a glass and solar panel production facility. PT Fertilizer Inti Technology is developing an NPK fertiliser business based on controlled release fertiliser (CRF). Several other companies such as Hebang Biotech, Golden Elephant, PT ANTAM, and Hailiang Nova have also joined, forming an industrial ecosystem based on copper, glass, and chemicals.
In the future, JIIPE is projected to become one of the new economic drivers. The investment target for this zone reaches Rp238 trillion with the potential to absorb up to 200,000 workers. As of September 2025, the realised investment is recorded at around Rp98 trillion with the absorption of more than 39,700 workers.
These achievements affirm that JIIPE is not just an investment centre, but also contributes substantially to job creation and national industrial growth.