New palm oil plantation

JAKARTA (JP): State-owned PT Perkebunan Nusantara (PTPN) XIV will develop 110,000 hectares of palm oil plantations in South, Central and Southeast Sulawesi at a cost of Rp 1.5 trillion (US$638.3 billion).

"The palm oil development will be completed in five years," the company's director of human resources and general affairs, Soemeidi, was quoted by Antara as saying in Ujungpandang on Tuesday.

He said about 50,000 hectares would be developed under the smallholding program and the rest as nucleus estates.

He said his company would build a palm oil processing plant for every 10,000 hectare of palm oil plantation. (bnt)