T

he government has provided a shred of certainty on the revitalization of a railway connecting Jakarta and Surabaya in East Java after months without specific plans.

Coordinating Maritime Affairs Minister Luhut Binsar Pandjaitan said recently that the government had allocated a certain amount of funds from the state budget to finance a preliminary feasibility study for the railway project, which will involve Japanese experts.

“I hope that the pre-[feasibility] study will be completed by July, so we can proceed with the finalization of the study,” he told reporters on Friday.

As many as Rp 40 billion (US$3 million) has been set aside from the Transportation Ministry’s budget for the pre-feasibility study.

The results of the study are expected to aid the government to decide the specification of the railway, including the use of electricity or diesel power and the speed of the rail.

The government has established a timetable for the project that sets the start of the construction at year-end or at the beginning of next year at the latest.

The Agency for the Assessment and Application of Technology (BPPT) will lead the study, joined by state railway operator PT Kereta Api Indonesia (KAI) as well as experts from Japan and Indonesia.

Luhut said the involvement of experts from Japan could help the government figure out the total costs needed for the project and the suitable scheme to finance it.

According to the government’s current estimate, a diesel-powered railway will cost Rp 30 trillion or less, while an electric-powered railway can cost up to Rp 80 trillion.

The government has previously calculated the possibilities of revitalizing the Jakarta-Surabaya railway under three designs, namely a fully conventional track with hundreds of level crossings, a partially elevated track to avoid level crossings and a high-speed fully elevated track.

The high-speed design is included as an option due to the long distance between Jakarta and Surabaya at more than 700 kilometers. The big difference in costs has become a concern of the government.

Luhut previously stated that the project would cost Rp 102 trillion under a fully conventional track design, but the figure could jump fivefold if the railway were to be built under a fully elevated track design.

The government has so far confirmed that the Jakarta-Surabaya railway project will likely be designed to accommodate trains traveling at an estimated speed of 160 km per hour. The travel time between the two cities is expected to fall to about five hours from the current 12 hours.

At present, there are 988 level crossings between Jakarta and Surabaya, making it impossible for a train to run at above 90 km per hour.

Meanwhile, the involvement of experts from Japan has become an indication that Japan will most likely secure the project.

During a visit to Indonesia in January, Japan’s Prime Minister Shinzo Abe said Japan would cooperate in the train and electricity sectors, among others, through “the development of high-quality infrastructure that has continued to be Japan’s strength.”

Japan previously lost the bid to develop a high speed railway from Jakarta to Bandung, West Java, to China.

Coordinating Maritime Affairs Ministry special staff Atmadji Sumarkidjo said that financing for the project might be realized through a business-to-business (B2B) scheme between a Japanese firm and KAI.