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'Availability payment' to boost toll road projects
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A car passes along a highway in Payakumbuh, Limapuluh Kota, West Sumatra, in this archive photo. (Antara/Maril Gafur)
T
he government has initiated an “availability payment” scheme for toll road projects to further boost less profitable projects. The Salatiga-Surakarta toll road will be the pilot project.
Indonesia Toll Road Authority (BPJT) head Herry Trisaputra Zuna said the new scheme would provide incentives for private partners. The scheme is expected to start as soon as possible as the government issued a presidential regulation (Perpres) last year as the legal basis.
"We will start with Salatiga-Solo [Surakarta] as the pilot project and will apply it to other projects, especially in less commercial areas," he said on Wednesday in Jakarta.
Under the scheme, the government will issue a concession for a toll road project and then sell it to a third party as the concessionaire. The concessionaire will put up capital as equity, or take out a loan, to pay the contractor to finish the project as well as an operator to commercialize the toll road.
The concessionaire will collect money from tolls for a specific period of time. As for the investment, the government as the original owner will pay the concessionaire back in accordance to the availability of the project.
"The government will make installments during the concession period, for example 20 years. Then the concessionaire will have to meet specific requirements, such as road quality and availability of several supporting facilities," Herry said. (ags)
