Ting Seen to set up fish processing plant

Ting Seen to set up fish processing plant

JAKARTA (JP): PT Ting Seen Banda Sejahtera will establish
canned fish and fish meal plants in Tual, in the southeastern
part of Maluku province, with an investment of US$200 million.

"The construction of the plants will start this month. The
company has already acquired 131 hectares of land at a cost of Rp
2.6 billion (US$1.1 million) for the factories," the speaker for
the Malra district's legislature, A.G. Wokanubun, said in Tual
over the weekend.

The canned fish and fish powder projects are scheduled to
start operation in 1998 with a production capacity of 42,000 tons
of canned fish, 3,000 tons of frozen squid and 8,500 tons of fish
meal per annum. Most of the products will be exported.

Wokanubun noted that the two plants, which are expected to be
the biggest in Southeast Asia, would not have trouble procuring
raw materials because the Maluku waters are abundant with fish.

"Hopefully the plants, which will employ 2,000 workers, will
become a boon to the local economy," he was quoted by Antara as
saying.

According to Wokanubun, the company paid the owners of the
land acquired for the plants between Rp 150 (6.4 U.S. cents) and
Rp 2,000 per square meter.

"The land price is okay as it is in line with what was already
set by the regent of southeastern Maluku in 1994. The land site
is categorized as less productive and is located outside of
town," he said. (13)