Kuala Tanjung Will Be Completed in 2019

Kuala Tanjung Will Be Completed in 2019

JAKARTA – PT Pelabuhan Indonesia (Pelindo) I targeted the completion of first and second phase construction of Kuala Tanjung Port, North Sumatra in 2019 to improve connectivity and logistic performance.

Pelindo I CEO, Bambang Eka Cahyana, explained all of Kuala Tanjung deep sea  port projects comprise 4 phases.

“However, we focus on first and second phase first,” he asserted after a seminar titled Kuala Tanjung Port Development on Wednesday (1/21).

For the next phase, he said the construction will depend on first and second phase. The state-owned port firm only conducts planning in these five years.

In the first phase, he focused multipurpose port construction of USD 400 million or around IDR 4.9 trillion with the capacity of three million tons of crude palm oil (CPO).

Bambang added in first-phase construction, it cooperates with PT Waskita Karya (Persero) and PT Pembangunan Perumahan (Persero). The shareholder of the first-phase project is Pelindo I of 55% while Waskita and PT PP hold 45%. The first-phase project begins construction in March 2015 and will be completed in 2018.

“How can the construction be so quick? Since the construction is decompile. Its berth and coast way will be installed on the pile,” he asserted.

According to the plan, the groundbreaking of multipurpose’s first phase construction will be conducted on January 27^th 2015 by President Joko Widodo.

For the field, he explained, Pelindo I does not need to conduct reclamation. Bamabng said the firm has prepared 40-hectare land.

Pelindo I, he added, prepares IDR 1 trillion budget from the total first-phase project cost whose budget comes from 2015 capital expenditure of IDR 3.2 trillion.

For first-phase project concession permit, Pelindo I is waiting for the signing by Transportation Minister, Ignasius Jonan, on Thursday (1/22).

In the second phase, Bambang explained Pelindo I will cooperate with two state-owned enterprises namely Inalum and PTPN III in form of industrial area.

“We need to wait for the MoU,” Bambang said.

In addition, the renters which will develop their business at the area are PT Semen Indonesia, PT Pertamina, PT Pupuk Indonesia, Inalum, and PTPN III.

An industrial area will be built on 1,000-hectare land whose 800 hectares is on land and 200 hectares are from reclamation. Currently, Pelindo I has obtained environmental impact analysis (amdal) permit for the reclamation.

Pelindo I conducts Kuala Tanjung Port construction analysis model through the partnership with Port of Rotterdam whose MoU was signed on October 13^th 2014.

World Class

Roger Classquin, Port of Rotterdam Managing Director, said his office believed Indonesia can build world-class port in North Sumatra.

According to him, Kuala Tanjung is targeted to be a transshipment port. Classquin believed Indonesia can compete with Malaysia and Singapore after all Pelindos are merged. “Not to compete each other.”

He said Indonesian government’s effort to construct five deep sea ports in Kuala Tanjung, Tanjung Priok, Tanjung Perak, Makassar, and Sorong is a good effort.

However, he reminded the importance of industrial area development since port development must be supported with integrated industries.

He suggested the industry integrated with port must be the industry whose raw materials are owned by the area such as CPO, gas, coal, aluminum.

“We have to see the number of vessel which will come, the capacity of vessel, and their needs so we build industrial gateway concept in Kuala Tanjung,” he said.

Maritime Coordinating Minister, Indroyono Soesilo, is optimistic the program to make Indonesia as a global maritime axis will be more realistic with the implementation of Kuala Tanjung Port development. (Bisnis Indonesia)