RI delays rice imports from Thailand

RI delays rice imports from Thailand

The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

Chairman of the State Logistics Agency (Bulog) Widjanarko
Puspoyo said on Wednesday the planned rice import from Thailand
would not materialize this year as the two countries had yet to
reach agreement over a US$40 million barter deal.

He expected the rice import from Thailand would take place
next year.

Indonesia and Thailand are planning a countertrade deal, under
which the former would import a total of 200,000 tons of rice
from the latter in exchange for one CN-235 aircraft, 122 train
car units, and shipments of ammonia, a chemical substance used in
the production of fertilizer.

Minister of Trade and Industry Rini MS Soewandi had signed a
memorandum of understanding (MoU) on the barter plan with her
Thailand counterpart a few months ago.

Of the 200,000 tons of rice to be swapped, some 100,000 tons
had been expected to materialize this year.

But Widjanarko said that the countertrade plan had to be
delayed as Thailand had yet to agree to the terms.

"Thailand demands the condition of the airplane be upgraded
first before it agrees to sign the deal," he told reporters on
the sidelines of a meeting with the House of Representatives
Commission III on agriculture, forestry and maritime.

He also said that Bulog had canceled plans to import rice from
Cambodia because the price demanded by the latter country was
deemed as too high.

"Cambodia wants to sell their rice at $230 per metric ton, but
we think the price should be about $195 per metric ton. So we
canceled it," he said.

But Widjanarko was quick to add that the lower rice import
volume would not endanger the national rice stock.

Bulog had initially planned to import more than 1 million tons
of rice this year.

Some 600,000 tons of rice would be imported from Vietnam,
250,000 tons from China, 100,000 tons from the U.S., 100,000 tons
from Thailand and the remainder from Cambodia.

Widjanarko said that as of September, Bulog had imported
635,000 tons of rice from Vietnam and China.

Rice is the main staple of most Indonesians.