New oil palm estates open

JAKARTA (JP): A joint venture of PT Jamaker Kalbar Jaya and PT Hutan Mas Sari started developing 50,000 hectares of oil palm and industrial timber estates earlier this week in the West Kalimantan district of Sanggau, which borders Malaysia's Kuching, an executive says.

Sutedjo, a director of the joint venture, PT Jamaker Sawit Sari, said Thursday there would eventually be 30,000 hectares of oil palm estates and 20,000 hectares of timber estates.

Sutedjo said the oil palm estates would operate under a nucleus and smallholder estate scheme in which about 8,000 transmigrant families would manage and eventually own 16,000 hectares of them. (04)