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Today's Headlines Infrastructure
The Indonesian government plans to show results of the prefeasibility study for the revitalization of the north coast railroad - that connects Jakarta and Surabaya on the island of Java - to Japan immediately after the study has been completed. Luhut Binsar Pandjaitan, Indonesia's Coordinating Minister for Maritime Affairs, said the government is expecting to start discussing the project in early August 2017.
Indonesian police informed that there were less traffic accidents during this year's Idul Fitri exodus compared to preceding years. Idul Fitri, a national week-long holiday, marks the end of the Islamic fasting month (Ramadan) and is a big happening in Indonesia. Ahead of Idul Fitri millions of workers who live in the cities travel to their places of origin to spend some days with their families. Locally, this tradition is known as "mudik" ("going home").
Perry Warjiyo, Deputy Governor of Indonesia's central bank (Bank Indonesia), believes Indonesia's gross domestic product (GDP) growth in the second quarter of 2017 will not be as high as earlier predicted because there has been a correction in Indonesia's export performance.
A large chunk of the costs for the development of Indonesia's first high-speed railway - between the capital city of Jakarta and Bandung - is covered now a consortium of Indonesian and Chinese companies signed a USD $4.5 billion loan with the China Development Bank. This loan should cover about 75 percent of the total (estimated) costs to develop this railway. In 2015 the Indonesian government, rather unexpectedly, awarded the contract for this project to China, sidestepping Japan that thought it would be appointed to establish this railway.
Tidal Bridge BV, a joint venture of Strukton International and DEC, has been awarded the contract to construct the Palmerah Tidal Bridge in Indonesia. The Dutch company will build a floating bridge in the Larantuka Strait, located in East Flores in the eastern part of Indonesia. This floating bridge will be linked to (what is set to become) the world's largest tidal power plant. The total duration of the project is estimated at four years with a final contract value of more than USD $550 million. This project is the first Dutch-Indonesian cooperation in the field of waterworks.
The Asian Development Bank (ADB) kept its forecasts for economic growth in Indonesia at 5.1 percent (y/y) in 2017 and 5.3 percent (y/y) in 2018, implying it expects the trend of accelerating economic growth in Southeast Asia's largest economy to continue. The Manila-based institution mentions improvement in private investment and trade (namely expectation of rising exports) as main sources for growth of Indonesia's gross domestic product (GDP) in the years ahead.
Airport Councils International, the only worldwide trade representative of the world's airports, considers Bali's I Gusti Ngurah Rai International Airport the world's third-best airport in the category "airports with an annual passenger capacity of 15-25 million people in 2016". The airport's score improved from 4.74 in the 2015 edition to 4.92 in the latest edition. To continue improving its performance, the airport operator will continue to invest in airport facilities as well as supporting infrastructure.
State-owned airport services company Angkasa Pura II, which operates airports in the western part of Indonesia, says construction of the third runway of the Soekarno-Hatta International Airport (located just outside Jakarta) will start in April 2017. This new runway, which requires about IDR 2 trillion (approx. USD $150 million) worth of investment, is expected to be ready for use in mid-2018. Soekarno-Hatta International Airport, the country's main port of entrance, is target of an ambitious expansion and renovation program with the aim to boost competitiveness by raising the airport's passenger capacity and flight frequency.
The government of Indonesia needs to be more aggressive and innovative to find new sources to fund its ambitious infrastructure development program. To achieve its infrastructure targets, the government will need to find ways to entice the private sector because public funds are limited. So far, however, the private sector is hesitant to engage in capital-intensive and long-term investment in a country where the investment climate is not optimal.
Cement consumption in Indonesia fell to 5.27 million tons in January 2017, down 2.3 percent year-on-year (y/y) from the same month one year ago. This decline was blamed on the intense rainfall in the nation's regions that managed to obstruct progress with various projects. Widodo Santoso, Chairman of the Indonesian Cement Association (ASI), said the decline in cement demand was seen in nearly all regions, including Sumatra, Java, Kalimantan, and Nusa Tenggara.
Latest Columns Infrastructure
After having grown rapidly in the years 2010-2013, infrastructure development in Indonesia lost its momentum in 2014. This was due to limited available government funds, uncertainty caused by the legislative and presidential elections, and the nation's slowing economic growth. After Joko Widodo became Indonesia's seventh president in October 2014, it was expected that infrastructure development would revive. However, it didn't. But Widodo made one important move by seriously reducing energy subsidies, hence making more funds available for infrastructure development.
Last week it was officially announced that China Railway International Co. Ltd, subsidiary of China Railway Group Ltd, together with a consortium consisting of Indonesian state-owned enterprises (which include Pilar Sinergi BUMN Indonesia, Wijaya Karya, Kereta Api, and Jasa Marga) will build Indonesia's first ever high-speed railway, valued at over USD $5 billion, between the capital city of Jakarta and Bandung (in West Java), a route that stretches for approximately 150 km.
China has won a contract to build a high-speed railway between Indonesia's capital city of Jakarta and Bandung (West Java), beating Japan along the way. Earlier this month, the Indonesian government unexpectedly decided to decline proposals from Japan and China for the construction of a multi-billion high-speed railway between both cities as these proposals included financial assistance or a guarantee from the Indonesian government. Moreover, Indonesia considered a super-fast train unnecessary on the relatively short route (150 km).
In response to the ailing global economy, Indonesian President Joko Widodo has unveiled a new economic policy package that aims to boost economic growth of Indonesia amid a highly uncertain global context. On Wednesday (09/09), Joko Widodo (often called Jokowi) provided some details about the first phase of this new stimulus package during a speech at the State Palace in Jakarta.
Government-led infrastructure development is regarded by most analysts and policymakers as the key to overcome Indonesia’s slowing economic growth as infrastructure development will cause a multiplier effect in the economy (triggering growth in other industries such as cement and property while job availability grows accordingly). In the second quarter of 2015, Indonesia’s gross domestic product (GDP) growth slowed to 4.67 percent (y/y), a six-year low.
Indonesia is the eight-largest shareholder within the newly established Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB). The Indonesian Finance Ministry announced earlier this week that the country will invest USD $672.1 million in the AIIB over the next five years. The AIIB is a new multilateral financial institution (initiated by China) that is to provide funds for infrastructure development projects in the Asia Pacific region. Initially, the AIIB has an authorized capital of USD $50 billion. This is expected to grow to USD $100 billion.
A total of 1,555,609 foreign tourists have visited the island of Bali, the most popular tourist destination in Indonesia, in the first five months of 2015, an 11.3 percentage point growth from the same period last year. Given that the number of foreign tourists usually peaks in the period June-September it is most likely that the government’s target of welcoming 4 million foreign tourists on Bali in 2015 will be achieved, or exceeded. Most tourists that visit Bali originate from Australia, China and Japan.
The latest data from the Indonesian Cement Association (ASI) show that cement consumption in Indonesia declined 3.8 percent (year-on-year) to 22.9 million tons in the first five months of 2015 (from 23.8 million tons of cement in the same period last year). This fall is the steepest decline in Indonesian cement consumption since 2009 when demand plunged nearly seven percent (y/y) amid the impact of the global financial crisis. The current decline is caused by the country’s economic slowdown and falling commodity prices outside Java.
Although most emerging market stocks fell, Indonesian stocks and the rupiah showed a solid performance on Thursday (21/05). The rupiah appreciated 0.40 percent to IDR 13,122 per US dollar according to the Bloomberg Dollar Index, while the benchmark stock index of Indonesia (Jakarta Composite Index) rose 0.39 percent to 5,313.21 points. Most emerging stocks fell due to weak data from China (despite a series of stimulus). However, Indonesian stocks were supported by news about its credit rating and dividend announcements.
Indonesia is not the easiest place to invest for foreign investors. This is reflected by the World Bank's Doing Business 2014 index in which Indonesia ranks 120th. In a business forum, held last week in Beijing, Chinese businessmen expressed a number of matters that blocked or seriously delayed their investments in Indonesia. For Indonesia (both domestic and foreign) investment realization, particularly in infrastructure, is important as investments is considered the main driver for the country’s economic growth in 2016.
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