Investvine-Apr 15
Indonesia and China on April 13 in Beijing signed five cooperation contracts worth $23.3 billion under the latter’s Silk Road Economic Belt and 21st Century Maritime Silk Road initiatives.
The cooperation covers the construction of a $2-billion hydropower plant in Kayan in North Kalimantan, the development of a $700-million facility for converting coal into gas there, as well as the construction of a $17.8-billion hydropower plant on Kayan River. Other contracts cover the development of a $1.6.billion power plant in Bali and the construction of a $1.2- billion steel smelter, Antara news agency reported.
Both nations also signed two memoranda of understanding on the development of electric cars and motorcycles, as well as the construction of the Tanah Kuning Mangkupadi Industrial Park in North Kalimantan.
Indonesia’s Coordinating Maritime Affairs Minister Luhut Panjaitan highlighted the importance of encouraging business relations between both nations in line with the national interests.
“It is a matter of being smart to eye opportunities to derive more benefits,” he pointed out, adding that the opportunities have to be seized to increase investment, create more jobs, raise the national gross domestic product and, generally, boost economic growth.
He said that Indonesia would seek further cooperation with China on some of Indonesia’s economic corridors, including those in North Sumatra, North Kalimantan, North Sulawesi and Bali, with an investment value of $51.9 billion.
The Silk Road Economic Belt and 21st Century Maritime Silk Road initiatives encompass investment for the development of infrastructure, railway tracks, toll roads, automotive products, real estate and power plants spanning over spanning dozens of countries across Asia, Africa and Europe.
