RI firm builds pulp and paper mill in Sarawak
RI firm builds pulp and paper mill in Sarawak
JAKARTA (JP): The Raja Garuda Mas Group said yesterday that it had started the construction of a US$1.3 billion joint-venture pulp and paper mill with PWE Industries Berhad of Malaysia in the Sarawak city of Bintulu, Malaysia.
The construction of the pulp and paper mill, called Sarawak Pulp and Paper, will be launched by the Malaysian Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad on Saturday.
Raja Garuda Mas, according to the company's statement, owns 55 percent of the joint venture, with PWE Industries holding the remaining 35 percent.
PWE Industries is a subsidiary of the Ekram Group, which is controlled by the Malaysian tycoon Tan Sri Ting Khiing.
The chairman of the Raja Garuda Mas Group, Sukanto Tanoto, said that in the first phase of operation, Serawak Pulp & Paper will produce 750,000 tons of pulp per annum.
"In the next phase, we will set up another integrated pulp and paper mill to produce uncoated paper with an annual capacity of 300,000 tons per annum," Sukanto said.
Sukanto said that the group's expansion to Malaysia is in line with his business strategy to become a global player in the pulp and paper industry.
"It is becoming more urgent for us to anticipate the era of free trade in Southeast Asia and the Asia Pacific region, with the ASEAN Free Trade Area (AFTA) and APEC agreements coming into effect," he noted.
The Sarawak pulp and paper mill, Sukanto said, will use wood chippings from timber cleared on the 69,000-hectare area near the mill for its raw materials.
The Malaysian government is set to clear the area for the construction of the Bintulu Dam hydroeletrolic power station.
"But in the long-term raw materials will be supplied by Ekran's industrial forests," he said.
The biggest paper producer in Malaysia at present is Genting Sanyen with a total capacity of approximately 250,000 tons per annum.
The Raja Garuda Mas Group has already entered the pulp and paper industry through PT Inti Indorayon Utama in North Sumatra and PT Riau Andalan Pulp & Kertas in Riau.
Recently, Riau Andalan started the construction of a US$630 million paper plant in Kampar, Riau.
Sukanto added that he would employ Indonesian management. (08)