Mega resorts planned for Bali, Belitung

JAKARTA (JP): Two private companies controlled by Hutomo Mandala Putra, President Soeharto's youngest son, are planning to establish resorts worth billions of dollars on Bali and on Belitung island, South Sumatra.

Hutomo, popularly known as Tommy, is developing the 650- hectare Pecatu Indah Resort Bali in Jimbaran, southern Bali, through PT Bali Pecatu Graha. The company's subsidiary, PT Putra Ciptawahana Sejati, is to develop the 1,070-hectare Belitung Indah Resort on Belitung island, which is famous for tin mining.

Bali Pecatu's president, Made G. Putrawan, who is also the president of Putra Ciptawahana, told a press conference here yesterday that the Bali resort was expected to attract US$1.6 billion in domestic and overseas investment for the various components at the site, while the Belitung resort may attract $120 million.

He said that besides its eight hotels, the Pecatu Indah Resort Bali would also have golf courses covering 300 hectares, botanical gardens, residential areas, cultural centers and community facilities.

Construction of the first stage of the Bali resort is expected to be completed by the end of next year. The entire development is scheduled to be completed by 2003.

Bali Pecatu's finance director, Gusti Bagus Mantika, said the company had secured Rp 115 billion ($48.7 million) in loans from a banking syndicate -- Bank Eskpor Impor Indonesia, Bank Tabungan Negara and Bank Rama -- to develop the first stage of infrastructure for the Bali resort.

Established in 1990, Bali Pecatu is 98.5 percent owned by Tommy. The remaining shares are owned by his sister-in-law, Ilsje Sigit Soeharto.

Gusti said the second stage of infrastructure development would be financed by selling land within the site to investors.

"For the third stage, we plan to issue bonds and for the last stage we will float shares on capital markets, either domestically or internationally," he said.

The country's first integrated resort development is in Nusa Dua, Bali. It was pioneered by the government, and contains several luxury hotels and convention centers.

The Bali Nirwana Resort, which is under construction, is another resort development on the island. Owned by Bakrie Group, it is scheduled to open next year.

The Belitung Indah Resort is to be the first tourist resort on Belitung island.

A number of private firms have been reluctant to invest in tourist businesses in Belitung because of its sparse infrastructure. There are also no official reports on tourist numbers there.

Chairperson of the Indonesian Tourism Promotion Board Wuryastuti Sunario said that, besides natural attractions, resorts must have proper access and unique attractions and activities for tourists.

"Thumbs up for a company willing to develop a tourist resort on an island like Belitung," she said.

Some businessmen have expressed concern over the Tanjung Pandan airport in Belitung which needs improving to cater for more tourists.

Belitung island, 77 kilometers wide and 79 kilometers long, lies off the east coast of Sumatra.

Another tourist resort in Belitung which was sponsored by the government and the local authorities of South Sumatra has not gone ahead.

However, Putrawan said yesterday that the airport in Belitung would soon be expanded and daily flights from Jakarta and Singapore were scheduled to fly to the island.

"We will sell the beaches and the isolation of the planned Belitung resort," he said.

He said the Belitung Indah resort would be developed in three stages until 2005. (icn)