Kuwait may invest in bridges and oil fields
Kuwait may invest in bridges and oil fields
JAKARTA (JP): Kuwaiti Prime Minister Sheikh Saad Al-Abdullah Al-Salem Al-Sabah left Jakarta for Bali yesterday, after promising officials here that his country would invest in infrastructure development in Indonesia.
Al-Sabah is scheduled to meet with Balinese government and military officials, including governor Ida Bagus Oka, before leaving for Kuwait later today.
At Merdeka Palace President Soeharto bid farewell to the crown prince, who said his country was interested in investing in infrastructure projects, such as bridges and oil fields.
Al-Sabah also said he wanted to explore the possibility of financing Indonesian industrial projects, including the government's high-cost Nusantara Aircraft Industry (IPTN) in Bandung.
While visiting IPTN's plant on Tuesday, he said Kuwait was considering buying the firms' CN-235 aircraft for domestic use.
He said his country was also interested in investing in IPTN. "We will discuss the details with (Indonesian) State Minister for Research and Technology B.J. Habibie," he said.
Al-Sabah said that he was "very interested" in the IPTN-made aircraft because they seemed suitable for Kuwaiti domestic flights.
Al-Sabah declined to say how many aircraft his country wanted to buy or when the purchase might be made.
In Bandung the prime minister and his entourage observed the construction of CN-235 aircraft and Puma and Bolco helicopters. He also examined the prototype of N-250 commuter aircraft, which is to be assembled in the United States from 1997.
IPTN President Habibie told his Kuwaiti guests that the industry was Indonesia's pride because its products were among the world's finest.
"Indonesia, in a relatively short time, has succeeded in establishing an aircraft industry, and is trying to catch up with industrialized countries in producing modern aircraft," he said.
He said IPTN, which was established in 1976, had produced almost 200 Casa and CN-235 passenger planes and about 60 helicopters. Almost 50 percent of those aircraft had been exported to countries overseas, including the United Arab Emirates, Malaysia and Spain, he said.
"In 1997, we will start building N-250 aircraft that can carry 68 passengers," Habibie said, adding that the new product had good prospects in the U.S., European, Australian and Asian markets.
He said that the manufacture of the aircraft had been handled by Indonesian engineers and "we import only aluminum as the raw material for the aircraft's body."
Habibie said the company employed about 8,000 workers. (rms/pet/pan)