T

he government plans to accelerate the construction of Cilamaya Port in West Java, to the end of next year from the initial schedule of 2020 to ease the flow of goods.

The Rp 15 trillion (US$1.3 billion) construction of the international port will be jointly carried out with Japan under a public-private partnership (PPP) scheme, involving a local administration and private investors, notably Japanese firms, according to Industry Minister MS Hidayat.

The arrangement would follow a build-operate-transfer process, in which private investors would build the project, operate it and transfer its ownership to the government, he said on Thursday.

'€œWe will ensure they have the right to manage the port and later will return it to the government,'€ Hidayat said in a press conference on pending issues to be solved by the incumbent government.

The port, which will take up 2,000 hectares of land in Karawang regency, will facilitate the movement of goods from industrial estates in surrounding areas that house most automotive, electronics, machinery and information technology manufacturers, according to Hidayat.

The establishment of Cilamaya Port is one of the five flagship projects under the Metropolitan Priority Area (MPA) for Investment and Industry included in bilateral cooperation between Indonesia and Japan.

Other projects include the development of the mass rapid transit (MRT) system, waste management facilities, both in Jakarta, and a high speed train network from
Jakarta to Surabaya, East Java as well as the expansion of Soekarno-Hatta International Airport, west of Jakarta.

The development of Cilamaya Port is meant to support the country'€™s biggest port in Tanjung Priok, North Jakarta, the average dwelling time of which is 5.98 days.

In comparison, Singapore'€™s average dwelling time is 1.5 days, Malaysia'€™s three days and Thailand'€™s four to five days.

Tanjung Priok'€™s relatively high dwelling time has resulted in port congestion and additional costs.

While Cilamaya Port is located in the same regency as many industrial estates, it takes up to eight hours for manufacturers in Karawang'€™s industrial estates, such as Japan'€™s major automakers Toyota and Daihatsu, to transport their vehicles and autoparts to Tanjung Priok in the neighboring province.

The construction of Cilamaya Port is still hampered by the existence of an oil and gas production block managed by PT Pertamina Hulu Energi Offshore North West Java in the location where the port will be situated.

Hidayat said the government would address the issue and Pertamina would comply with the port development plan.