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akarta is set to build its first international-class cruise ship terminal in the eastern part of Ancol to boost tourism in the country’s capital, especially the city’s Old Town area.

Tanjung Priok Port Authority office head Sahat Simatupang said his office and state-owned port operator Indonesian Port Corporation (IPC), also known as Pelindo II, are currently conducting a feasibility study on the construction of the new terminal.

“We expect to finish the feasibility study by the end of this year so that we can prepare designs for the cruise terminal in 2013,” Sahat told The Jakarta Post on Tuesday.

He said they had met with a number of investors who expressed interest in the new terminal.

“This is a very positive sign for this [particular] project, as well as for the future of cruise tourism in Indonesia,” Sahat said.

Recent data from the Tourism and Creative Economy Ministry shows that as of June this year, cruise ships had put in 198 port calls, bringing about 137,000 passengers to Indonesia. The data also shows that last year, the country’s ports recorded 189 calls from international cruise ships, bringing in about 132,000 passengers. The country’s largest international-class cruise terminal is located in Bali.

One of the world’s largest cruise liners, Royal Caribbean’s Legend of the Sea, made a stop in Bali’s Benoa Port in February, bringing more than 6,000 tourists to the island.

IPC corporate secretary Rima Novianti said they planned to connect the cruise terminal to the capital’s most popular tourist destination, Kota Tua, or Old Town, located in West and North Jakarta. Among the attractions in the Old Town is the historical port of Sunda Kelapa in North Jakarta.

Rima said Old Town’s distinctive ambience provided a perfect place for sightseeing for visiting tourists.

“As a capital city, Jakarta needs a world-class facility to attract more tourists,” she told the Post.

She said IPC was ready to count itself among the new terminal’s investors.

Contacted separately, the Tourism and Creative Economy Ministry’s meetings, incentives, conferences and events (MICE) director Rizky Handayani said the ministry could soon start promoting East Ancol as a new cruise destination to the world.

“We can start promoting East Ancol as the new destination now because cruise liners always make plans a year or two years in advance,” she told the Post.

She hoped the government could accelerate the development of seaports across the country to tap into increasing demand.

In the Master Plan for the Acceleration and Expansion of Indonesia’s Economy (MP3EI) program, the government has set aside Rp 117 trillion (US$12.75 billion) for the development of seaports, including Bali’s Tanah Ampo, which is projected to become Indonesia’s cruise hub.