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Govt shuts door for KCI to import Japanese trains
After months of debate, the government has decided not to let PT KCI import used rolling stock from Japan.
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Commuters wait for a train at Bojong Gede Station in Cibinong, West Jakarta, in February 2019. (Antara/Muhammad Adimaja )
T
he government has made a final decision to bar PT Kereta Commuter Indonesia (KCI) from purchasing used Japanese trains, but a failure to swiftly replace 10 trains the commuter line service operator plans to retire may have an impact on passenger capacity.
The Development Finance Comptroller (BPKP) has found several flaws in the import plan and concluded that it was still possible to maintain operations with KCI’s existing means, including by retrofitting old trains.
Previously, State-Owned Enterprises (SOEs) Minister Erick Thohir and Transportation Minister Budi Karya Sumadi had appeared willing to allow KCI to proceed with its import plan despite regulations normally allowing imports of used goods only where no domestic producer is available.
“BPKP [cites] several technical reasons [for why] importing used trains is not right,” Septian Hario Seto, undersecretary at the Office of the Coordinating Maritime Affairs Minister, told reporters on Thursday.
“So far, we still hold to the BPKP recommendations,” Seto said separately.
Read also: SOEs minister gives nod to KCI to import trains
Currently, KCI operates 106 trains capable of serving 1.2 million passengers in the Greater Jakarta area per day, with each train consisting of eight to 12 cars.
