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Slow land acquisition hampers disbursement of loans for high-speed railway
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President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo (left) inspects a model of the high-speed train that will connect the capital city of Jakarta to Bandung, West Java, with the president of the China Railway Corp., Sheng Guangzu (right), Chinese State Councillor Wang Yong (second right) and Chinese Ambassador to Indonesia Xie Feng (third right) during the groundbreaking ceremony for the construction of the railway in Cikalong Wetan, West Java, on Jan. 21, 2016. (AP Photo/Dita Alangkara)
U
nfinished land acquisition for the 142.3-kilometer high-speed railway connecting Jakarta and the West Java capital of Bandung has caused a delay in the disbursement of loans for the project from the Chinese government.
State-owned construction company PT Wijaya Karta (WIKA) president director Antonius Kosasih said on Tuesday that the Chinese government had required 100 percent of the necessary land to be acquired before disbursing the loans.
“Only 10 percent of the land for the project remains to be acquired,” said Anton on Tuesday, adding that Rp 2 trillion (US$149.7 million) was needed for the purchase.
(Read also: Jakarta-Surabaya project may become high-speed train)
In an agreement between the China Development Bank (CDB) and PT Kereta Cepat Indonesia China (KCIC), the developer of the project, CBD will disburse 75 percent of the agreed loans worth $5.2 trillion after all the land is acquired, Anton said.
Members of a consortium of four state-owned enterprises that group in PT Pilar Sinergi BUMN Indonesia (PSBI) – WIKA, railway operator PT Kereta Api Indonesia, plantation company PT Perkebunan Nusantara VIII and toll road operator PT Jasa Marga – have agreed to transfer the additional capital to acquire the remaining land.
PT PSBI holds 60 percent of the shares for the high-speed railway project, while another 40 percent is owned by companies from China.
“We will disburse the funds in February,” Anton said as reported by tempo.co.
Through the High Speed Railway Contractor Consortium (HSRCC), WIKA will handle 30 percent of the project worth $1.29 billion, while the remaining work would be handled by companies from China. (bbn)
