RI geothermal investment opportunities offered to NZ

Antara news, Saturday, November 14, 2009 22:03 WIB

Singapore (ANTARA News) - Indonesia has offered investment opportunities in the geothermal field to New Zealand to develop environmentally-friendly energy based on the "green growth" principle.

Industry Minister MS Hidayat said here on Saturday that the offer was made at a bilateral meeting between Indonesian President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono and New Zealand Prime Minister John Key at the Gemini Room of the Marina Mandarin Hotel in Singapore in the run-up to the 17th Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) forum.

"New Zealand has geothermal technology and therefore we discussed it with Prime Minister John Key," Hidayat said after accompanying President Yudhoyono at the bilateral meeting.

He said that after the meeting with John Key, President Yudhoyono gave directives to related ministers to emphasize on several cooperations with various countries, including New Zealand, which has competence in the geothermal energy field.

"We offered geothermal investment opportunities to New Zealand," Hidayat said, adding that to develop geothermal energy, the government should immediately issue a relevant pricing policy so that the investors who had interest in it could calculate the continuation of the investment in that field.

"If the price is commercially reasonable, the investors can continue to invest but if it isn`t, they would not dare to do so," Hidayat said.

Asked about New Zealand`s reaction to the offer, Hidayat said Prime Minister John Key asked Indonesia to decide the kind of geothermal development and then the New Zealand government would encourage private parties in the country to explore it in Indonesia.

"We have yet to touch on the value because we have yet to offer it specifically. We only said we want investment in the geothermal sector," Hidayat said, adding that a similar offer was also made to Japan.

Besides having bilateral talks with the New Zealand prime minister, President Yudhoyono had made a series of bilateral meetings with several heads of state/government, among others with Singapore Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong, Chinese President Hu Jintao, and Papua New Guinean Prime Minister Sir Michael Somare.

In the meeting with the New Zealand prime minister, President Yudhoyono was accompanied by among others Foreign Affairs Minister Marty Natalegawa, Coordinating Minister for Economy Hatta Radjasa, Finance Minister Sri Mulyani, Trade Minister Mari Elka Pangestu, Industry Minister M Hidayat, and presidential spokesman Dino Patti Djalal.

Indonesia Needs 35,000 Tourist Guides

Kompas, Jimbon, FRIDAY, 13 NOVEMBER 2009 | 6:27 PM

International tourists swarm Fatahillah Park, Kota Tua Jakarta. (Kompas/Osa Triyatna)

PONTIANAK, KOMPAS.com - Indonesia is in need of around 35,000 tourist guides in light of the country’s target of attracting 7 million foreign tourists in 2010. "The Indonesian Tourist Guides Association (HPI) at present has 12,000 members, and for just 2 million tourists, we need around 10,000 guides," I Nyoman Kandia, chairman of the HPI’s central executive board, said here on Friday.

Of the existing 12,000 tourist guides, he said, only about 30 percent were categorized as professional ones. According to Nyoman Kandia, tourist guides played an important role in supporting the tourism industry in the country.

"Tourist guides are required to master everything related to tourism objects, foreign exchange rates, and other kinds of information not directly related to tourism," Kandia said. In addition, he said, they were also required to master as many foreign languages as possible.

"Foreign language mastery is compulsory for tourist guides," Nyoman Kandia said, adding that about 50 percent of foreign tourists’ satisfaction depended on the tourist guides’ capability to explain everything they see or experience in the country. Therefore, he expressed hope that the central government would facilitate the training of professional tourist guides for all tourist destination areas across the country.

"The HPI central executive board has a management program for professional tourist guides, although it has not been easy to carry out the program," Nyoman Kandia said. Meanwhile, the Culture and Tourism Ministry (Depbudpar) has set itself the target of enticing 7 million foreign tourists to visit Indonesia in 2010, or up from from the 2009 target of 6.5 million tourists.

VP opens OVOP conference in Bali

The Jakarta Post, Jakarta | Sat, 11/14/2009 10:07 AM

Vice President Boediono will open an international conference on government-sanctioned “One Village One Product” program (OVOP) in Nusa Dua, Bali on Saturday morning.

Boediono's opening of the 6th in international conference on OVOP , which also features an exhibition, marks his second working visit after his inauguration as vice president.

The OVOP program, originally proposed by the Indonesian Chamber of Commerce and Industry (Kadin), aims to discover hidden opportunities to boost the country's industrial competitiveness, including searches for regions home to natural resources suitable for development, referred to in the studies as core competencies.

The government and Kadin expected there would be around 80 regions throughout the nation found to be eligible for the program.

Kadin said included in the potential for development were cassava and fish products, traditional medicine and herbs, textiles and pottery, metal crafts and paper products.

Ministry opens 1,500 civil servant vacancies for athletes, coaches

The Jakarta Post, Jakarta | Sat, 11/14/2009 11:43 AM

State Ministry for Sports and Youth Affairs has open around 1,500 vacancies in regional offices across the archipelago for athletes and coaches.

“The main qualification is a gold medal winner in a National Games,” Wafid Muharram, secretary of the ministry, said Saturday as quoted by kompas.com.

The maximum ages to apply for the vacancies are 35 years old for athletes and 40 for coaches, much more lenient that standard civil servant qualification, he said.

Last year, the ministry opened around 800 vacancies in the same program, but only have of them were filled.

The Indonesian Sport Council (KONI) has been working to provide post-playing career employment options for athletes.

Many notable athletes, especially in the past when prize winnings were small and sponsorship was rare, have faced a difficult life when they retired.

Paper giant to withdraw from Indonesia rainforest destruction

www.chinaview.cn 2009-11-13 20:33:28

JAKARTA, Nov. 13 (Xinhua) -- Finnish global paper giant UPM-Kymmene planned to stop purchasing pulp from Asia Pacific Resources International Holding Limited (APRIL), which has involved in rainforest destruction in Riau province of Indonesia, Green peace said here Friday.

The decision comes following a move by dozens of Green peace activists from around the world who chained themselves to escavators in a logged peat land forest the province, demanding the United States to take more actions to end deforestation. The activists are now being detained by the police.

Greenpeace campaigner for Southeast Asia Bustar Maitar said that UPM, which supplies products like photocopy paper to global markets including the United States, China, Europe and Australia, admitted that APRIL's pulp "comes from a very delicate environment."

"It is reported that the firm would begin to cancel its contract with APRIL," Maitar told Xinhua over phone.

"The plan indicated a very positive move by UPM to help protect Indonesia's rainforests and carbon rich peatlands, the destruction of which leads to climate change, mass species extinction and causing poverty in forest dependent communities," he added.

"If international companies start distancing themselves from this environmental disaster, the call to end global deforestation here and around the globe will only get louder and louder."

Greenpeace estimates the contract to be equal to over 4 percent of APRIL's total pulp production, worth over 55 million U.S. dollars annually.

The campaigner said that APRIL had involved in forest destruction as the firm still had not licencing completely and operating at the peatland area in which its depth was more than 3 meters.

Besides, the firm had started operation before completing assessment of the location of the highly conservative forest.

"This is illegal under Indonesian law," said Maitar.

Editor: Lin Zhi

Related Article:

Indonesian forest on frontline of climate debate

China`s Huwaei to set up training centers in Indonesia

Antara News, Friday, November 13, 2009 15:10 WIB

Chinese telecommunication giant Huawei plans to establish two major training centers and a Research & Development (R&D) center here, a senior Huawei official said on Thursday.

Huawei tech Investment President Director Ma Yue said that the planned training centers are expected to graduate 1,500 credible Indonesian telecommunication technicians each year.

According to Ma, Huawei has supplied telecommunication equipment for 9 mobile telecommunications operators operating in Indonesia to develop their GSM (Global System for Mobile) and Code Division Multiple Access (CDMA) telecommunication networks.

RI to purchase trainer, attack aircraft from Russia, China

The Jakarta Post, Jakarta | Fri, 11/13/2009 8:58 AM

Indonesia will purchase new trainer/light attack aircraft from Russia and China as part of an effort to revitalize its primary defense system, says newly sworn-in Air Force chief of staff Vice Marshal Imam Safaat.

He said the new jets, consisting the Yak-130 from Russia and the FTC-2000 Mountain Eagle from China, would replace the squadrons of British Hawk Mk-53 jets and American OV-10 Bronco.

The Air Force has 20 Hawk Mk-53, and eight turboprop-driven OV-10 Bronco aircraft that are around 30 years old.

“We plan to replace them in the next couple of years. We have done feasibility studies for the purchases, and will propose them to the government soon,” Imam said after the handover ceremony at Halim Perdanakusumah Air Force Base in East Jakarta. Imam replaced Marshal Subandrio.

It would be the first time Indonesia purchases warplanes from China and the second from Russia after the United States embargoed the supply of spare parts for its F-5E Tiger II and F-16 Fighting Falcon jet fighters and C-130 Hercules transport planes in 1999 due to human rights abuses mainly East Timor.

The Indonesian Military (TNI) spokesman, Rear Marshal Sagom Tamboen said the reshuffle in the Air Force leadership was conducted to improve its professionalism through the regeneration of leaders.

Sagom added the new Air Force chief was assigned to boost the country’s air defense system by increasing the quality of aircraft and equipment.

“It is our mission to reduce accidents during training and operational work conducted by Air Force personnel to zero,” he said.

Iman said the military aircraft had to be replaced soon because the Air Force had used the existing planes for more than 30 years.

Imam said further that the Indonesian Military had also planned to replace the old F-5E Tiger II jets.

“We expect to replace them by 2013,” he told The Jakarta Post.

Imam declined to mention the prices of the new aircraft, saying he had not yet discussed it with the government.

“They are expensive,” he said, adding the aircraft would be purchased using foreign aid.

Indonesia bought three Sukhoi fighter jets in February this year to strengthen aerial defense following a series of deadly accidents caused by outdated military aircraft.

The country now has seven Sukhoi-type fighters, all of which were purchased from Russia through a credit scheme. Three more are expected later this year.

Indonesia purchased the seven fighter jets from Russia through the seven-year credit scheme at a total price of US$335 million, but does not have to start making payments for five years.

TNI chief Gen. Djoko Santoso said the Air Force would focus on increasing the operational quality of its basic equipment and maintenance.

“That includes the improvement of the Air Force’s radar systems and air control power,” he said.

Sagom said the Air Force would also focus on improving personnel welfare, despite its limited budget, in addition to increasing safety standards for its primary weaponry defense system.

Sagom added that 70 percent of the Air Force’s budget was geared toward the welfare of personnel. The other 30 percent was for the maintenance of equipment and spare parts.

He said the Air Force budget was expected to increase to between Rp 5 trillion ($531.6 million) and Rp 7 trillion next year, up from Rp 4 trillion this year. (nia)

US Aims to Double Number of Indonesian Guest Students

The Jakarta Globe

US Ambassador to Indonesia Cameron Hume has announced his support for an initiative to double the number of Indonesians studying in the US within the next five years.

The "Take Control" initiative will increase Indonesian students' access to free advisory services from AMINEF EducationUSA, a State Department-supported network of educational advising centers around the world tasked with assisting international students.

"I endorse this initiative to encourage Indonesian students to study in the United States. They should take control of their future, and we can help to make it happen," Ambassador Hume said.

Almost 7,700 Indonesian students are currently studying in the US. To double that number, EducationUSA said it would send advisors out to mobile centers around the country.

Visitors to the booths will be able to talk to an adviser and get help on how to select a university, apply for a course of study, assess financial needs and apply for a visa.

More information is available at www.educationUSA.or.id.

Govt to auction Rp2 Trillion bonds Nov 17

Antara News, Thursday, November 12, 2009 22:43 WIB | Economic & Business

Jakarta (ANTARA News) - The government will offer rupiah-denominated state bonds of Rp2 trillion in an auction on November 17, a Finance Ministry official said.

Proceeds from the issuance of the bonds, all of them reopening of the existing issues, will be used to meet part of the financing target in the 2009 state budget, the ministry`s director general of debt management, Rahmat Waluyanto, said in a statement on Thursday.

The bonds up for auction will be series FR0031, FR0040 and FR0052.

The fixed rate bonds series FR0031 due on November 15, 2020 will be issued at a coupon of 11 percent to be paid every May 15 and November 15.

The fixed rate bonds series FR0040 to be issued at a coupon of 11 percent will mature on September 15, 2025. Coupon payments will be made every March 15 and September 15.

The fixed rate bonds series FR0052 due on August 15, 2030 will be issued at a coupon of 10.50 percent to be paid every February 15 and August 15.

"The government has the right to sell the three types of bonds at higher or lower prices than the indicative amount," Rahmat said.

Thai Banpu plans $466 mln investment, wary on outlook

Reuters, By Pisit Changplayngam, Wed Nov 11, 2009 5:41am EST

BANGKOK, Nov 11 (Reuters) - Banpu BANP.BK, Thailand's largest coal miner, said on Wednesday it planned to invest $466 million over the next six years, but warned lower average selling prices in 2010 would mean just single-digit revenue growth.

"Most of our investment money for existing projects will be spent on coal rather than the power business," Chief Executive Chanin Vongkusolkit told reporters, referring to spending plans starting next year.

Of the total investments, $189 million would be for coal mining projects in Indonesia, $22 million for its coal business in China and the rest for its 40 percent owned Hongsa lignite power plant project in Laos, Chanin said.

Under the plan, the company aimed for total coal production in China and Indonesia to rise to 33.5 million tonnes, he said, without giving a comparison.

Banpu is also the fourth-biggest coal miner in Indonesia with five coal mines, and has three in China. It is now on the lookout for new assets in the region, mainly in Indonesia and Australia.

"We are quite capable of getting help from financial institutions -- with cash flow and assets worth about 50 billion baht and debt to equity of 0.24, say -- if we were to win any bidding or acquire new businesses," he added.

Banpu shares closed up more than 3 percent on Wednesday at their highest in nearly a month at 462 baht, while the broad market .SETI was up 1.4 percent.

On Tuesday it reported a higher-than-expected 22 percent rise in third-quarter net earnings after the market closed, helped by higher coal sales from Indonesian mines and gains from coal swaps.

LOWER COAL PRICES

Chanin said the company's 2010 revenue would grow by a single-digit percentage from this year's expected 57 billion baht ($1.71 billion) as it expected average coal prices in 2010 to fall below the $72 a tonne targeted this year.

Sixteen analysts polled by Thomson Reuters I/B/E/S forecast revenue of 54.8 billion baht, down 1.6 percent from an expected 55.7 billion baht this year.

"Sales in 2010 will still grow in volume, but having said that, average sale prices would be lower as we'll be expecting more low-quality coal, which would weigh on sales growth," he added.

At the end of September, Banpu's coal reserves stood at 581.4 million tonnes, down 1.1 percent from the previous quarter.

Its average coal selling price in the third quarter was $69.49 per tonne, down 17 percent from a year earlier.

Chanin said he expected fourth-quarter sales of about 16 billion baht, but Banpu would see "less net profit" compared to its 3.81 billion baht ($114.4 million) in the third quarter due to a maintenance shutdown at its 50 percent owned BLCP plant, along with a fall in average selling prices. ($1= 33.30 Baht) (Writing by Ploy Ten Kate; Editing by Alan Raybould)

Major Indonesian Seaports Now Open Around the Clock

The Jakarta Globe, Putri Prameshwari

Jakarta's Tanjung Priok and three other ports around the country will now operate 24 hours a day. (Photo: Antara)

Four major domestic seaports will now be open 24 hours a day, seven days a week as part of a government plan to increase trade, Transportation Minister Freddy Numberi said on Wednesday.

“This is to boost our export and import activities,” he said.

The four ports are Tanjung Priok in North Jakarta, Belawan in Medan, North Sumatra, Tanjung Perak in Surabaya, East Java and Soekarno-Hatta in Makassar, South Sulawesi.

The move comes after the Indonesian Chamber of Commerce and Industry (Kadin) and other business organizations called for working hours to be extended at the country’s ports earlier this month.

Operations at the four ports would be open not only for ship docking but also for customs and immigration activities, Freddy said. “This way, if a cargo ship arrives at 2 a.m., it can immediately be served,” he said, adding that it could also avoid vessels from docking for too long as a result of delays.

Freddy said he hoped service would be improved if ports were open for 24 hours.

Sunaryo, director general of maritime transportation at the Transportation Ministry, said the infrastructure to open the seaports around the clock was adequate.

“All we have to do is coordinate with customs,” he said.

The hardest part would be to provide 24-hour manpower to load and unload vessels, Sunaryo said. “That should be synchronized with the Manpower Ministry,” he said.

On the other hand, Sunaryo said, the Transportation Ministry’s initiative could create more jobs, especially for people living near the ports.

The plan is currently in a test phase and would be officially implemented next January, Freddy said.

Richard J Lino, chairman of state-owned port operator PT Pelindo II, said it would take a long time to get all relevant agencies, including customs, immigration, and quarantine services, to coordinate their work activities at the seaports.

“They need time to adjust,” he said.

The government also wants to establish an international-standard port in Indonesia to function as hub port for the wider region.

PT Pelindo II has been pushing for Tanjung Priok to be that port. Lino said he hoped Tanjung Priok would be ready to operate as an international hub port by 2014.

Renovating the port, he said, would take five years and cost up to Rp 7 trillion ($749 million).

An archipelago of more than 17,000 islands, Indonesia relies heavily on sea transportation. Millions of people and tons of cargo are delivered every day using big vessels and small ships.

Pelindo II manages ports across Indonesia, including in Banten, Palembang in South Sumatra as well as Teluk Bayur seaport in West Sumatra, and Sunda Kelapa port in North Jakarta.

HSBC Launches Yuan Trade Settlement Services In Indonesia

The Wall Street Journal

HSBC Holdings PLC (HBC) launched trade transaction services in Indonesia using the Chinese yuan, Xinhua news agency reported Wednesday, citing a senior HSBC official.

Vincent C. Sugianto, head of trade and supply chain HSBC Indonesia, said the service can only be conducted between Chinese firms authorized to make such transactions and their counterparts in the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, according to the report.

He said HSBC will provide various yuan transaction services in Indonesia, including trade financing, currency exchange between the rupiah and yuan, and export/import financing.

HSBC now offers yuan trade settlement services in six Asean countries, according to the report. The others are Malaysia, Thailand, Singapore, Vietnam and Brunei, the report said.

Related Article:

Indonesia, EU sign partnership agreement

Merpati prepares fund for leasing new planes

Nani Afrida, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta | Wed, 11/11/2009 3:15 PM

Merpati Airlines, revealed Wednesday that the company will lease seven ATR-72 aircraft in the first quarter of 2010, costing US$80,000- $90,000 each per month, and that it planned to further lease a total of 22 planes by 2011.

“We will start with 7 planes in the first quarter of 2010 first. Hopefully by the beginning of 2011 we will lease all of 22 planes,” Merpati President Director Bambang Bakti told reporters at the office of state ministry for state enterprises in Jakarta.

He said that the company had allocated a budget for leasing those planes, which are from France, at about Rp 1 billion per aircraft per month.

“We also have prepared Rp 3-5 billion as additional an budget per aircraft for training for pilots and co-pilots, technicians, stewardesses, including maintenance and flying approval,” Bambang said.

Merpati is targeting to increase its routes from 150 to 200 routes using the new armada. The company also plans to create a hub, which will provide flying services to remote areas for its consumer.

Indonesia's Toba Pulp to invest $150 mln in capacity

Reuters, Tue Nov 10, 2009 6:32am EST

JAKARTA, Nov 10 (Reuters) - Indonesian pulp producer, PT Toba Pulp Lestari (INRU.JK), plans to invest $150 million to increase the capacity of its factory in the next two years, corporate secretary Anwar Lawden said on Tuesday.

The firm aimed to increased the capacity of its factory in North Sumatra in the next two years to 300,000 tonnes from 165,000 tonnes by adding machinery, Lawden said by telephone.

"We are still reviewing our options but we plan to seek loans from financial institutions including banks."

Toba Pulp, which has a stock market value of $26.2 million, currently produces dissolving pulp -- the basic material for rayon fiber -- and bleached kraft pulp to make paper.

The firm aims to sell 50,000 tonnes of dissolving pulp and 162,000 tonnes of bleached kraft pulp in 2009, with most exported to China.

It will move to only producing dissolving pulp starting from January 2010, with a planned capacity of 200,000 tonnes in 2010. (Reporting by Tyagita Silka; Editing by Ed Davies)

Foreign Businesses Frustrated by Blackouts in Jakarta

The Jakarta Globe, Dian Ariffahmi, Yessar Rossendar & Teguh Prasetyo

Foreign manufacturers are joining the growing list of industries unhappy with Jakarta’s ongoing blackouts, saying frequent work stoppages are gouging into their production and endangering millions of dollars in overseas investments.

A 28-member delegation of Japanese business leaders complained about the outages to Industry Minister MS Hidayat on Monday.

The group was from the Kansai Economic Federation, also known as Kankeiren, which represents thousands of firms from Japan’s Kansai region that operate in Indonesia.

Hidayat said the Kankeiren delegation told him the blackouts in the city were burdening their business activities.

“They didn’t mention which companies are suffering from this power problem, but they represent all business players and investors who put their money here,” Hidayat told reporters after the meeting.

“I told them I am sorry, it is also affecting local industry. But I assured them that electricity infrastructure is among the top priorities in the [Yudhoyono administration’s] 100-day program. So it will be fixed as early as possible,” Hidayat said.

A senior official with PT Perusahaan Listrik Negara, the state electricity utility, said last week that Jakarta, Bekasi and Tangerang would continue to experience rotating four-hour shifts of power rationing through the end of the month.

PLN is struggling to meet demand for power in Greater Jakarta since a fire at its central facility in Cawang, East Jakarta, in September. The blaze triggered mechanical problems with other generators on the grid this month because they were overloaded.

Eddy Widjanarko, chairman of the Indonesian Footwear Association (Aprisindo), said shoe factories were operating at only between 50 to 60 percent capacity because of the unstable power supply.

Eddy said Aprisindo was meeting on Monday with seven Korean footwear producers to discuss the blackouts.

In a desperate move to guarantee a power supply, “the seven South Korean firms, which own factories in Gunung Putri, Bogor, in West Java, are now considering setting up their own coal- and gas-fired power generators,” Eddy said.

Related Article:

Govt apologizes for power blackouts

Garuda to spend $100m on expansion, new aircraft

Nani Afrida, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta | Tue, 11/10/2009 12:38 PM

Garuda Indonesia will spend US$100 million next year as part of its five-year expansion plan, which aims to increase the national flag carrier's fleet from 67 to 116 aircraft by 2014, to serve 27 million passengers.

"We plan to spend $100 million in capital expenditure in 2010 to buy more planes as well as to fulfill Garuda's other operational expenditure," Garuda finance director Eddy Purwanto told reporters on Monday.

He said Garuda still requires yet more capital to improve its infrastructure to provide its passengers with wider and better services.

If it manages to achieve this expenditure target , then it will be the third time the airline spent has $100 million in capital expenditure or more in one year,. It also spent over $100 million on capital expenditure in 2008.

The 2009 capital expenditure (so far) used in part to purchase new Airbus aircraft from Toulouse in south western France and from Boeing in Seattle in the United States.

Next year's proposed spending will be part of the airline's ambitious five-year expansion program to make it not only the largest airline in the country, but also one that can compete with its regional rivals.

On Monday, Garuda received one new Airbus 330-200 and one new Boeing 737-800.

Garuda has ordered 10 new Boeing 777-300ERs and 50 Boeing 737-800s. Previously, the company has received three Airbus 330-200s and one Boeing 737-800.

"Until today, we have about 67 aircraft. So, by 2014 we will be targeting to have at least 116 aircraft," Garuda president director Emirsyah Satar said, adding that the expansion program called for the modernization and revitalization of the Garuda aircraft fleet.

With this larger fleet, Garuda will be able to strengthen and expand it regional presence, flying more routes and with greater flight frequency.

"We will increase our routes and our increase the number of flights from 1,700 times per week in 2009 to 3,000 times per week in 2014," Emisyah said.

He said that the company was targeting to serve 27 million passengers by 2014, up from 10.1 million passengers recorded in 2008.

Emirsyah is confident the company would be able to achieve its operational targets and make Rp 3.75 trillion ($397.5 million) in profits by 2014.

In 2008, the airline booked Rp 669 billion in profits, out of total revenue of Rp 19.4 trillion.

For this year, Garuda has set a minimum 10 percent growth target for net profits compared to a year earlier. In the first half of this year, net profits stood at Rp 612 billion.

The company is now preparing to sell 40 percent of its stake though an initial public offering (IPO) next year (in 2010), in a process Garuda expects to bring in $300 million to $400 million in proceeds.

"Our target is still on these figures," he said.

The planned IPO is part of a debt restructuring agreement between the company and its creditor Bank Mandiri to settle a previously unpaid debt of about $100 million.

Japanese power giants to build plants

Mustaqim Adamrah, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta | Mon, 11/09/2009 7:16 PM

At least two Japanese business empires, Mitsui & Co. Ltd. and Marubeni Corp., have expressed interest in constructing two power plants to help the Indonesian government address the electricity deficit.

Industry Minister Mohamad Suleman Hidayat said Monday Mitsui planned to build an 800-megawatt power plant in Paiton, East Java, while Marubeni would build a 600-MW power plant in Cirebon, West Java.

"They will become IPP [independent power producers]. Hopefully, they can start [the projects by the end of] this year," he told reporters after a meeting with a delegation from the Japanese Kansai Economic Federation (Kankeiren).

Hidayat said Japanese businesses operating in country had complained about the power outages the country was currently facing. State electricity company PLN has been conducting rotating blackouts, which will continue until the end of this year.

Telkom launches Mojopia as platform for web services

The Jakarta Post, Jakarta | Fri, 11/06/2009 2:36 PM

Indonesia's largest telecommunication company, PT Telekomunikasi Indonesia (Telkom), launched on Thursday a web portal called Mojopia that would serve as a platform for online shopping, content and communication.

Mojopia aims to revolutionize the domestic e-commerce industry through providing various web applications that can be used for online transactions between customers and vendors.

The web portal will also serve as a content aggregator and communication platform for internet users. The web portal is currently under construction. The beta version is expected to be available by the end of the year under the address of www.mojopia.com.

"Telkom as an infrastructure provider and Mojopia as an e-commerce portal and content aggregator will open access to various types of communication that can be used by anyone, wherever and whenever," Telkom president director Rinaldi Firmansyah said.

Mojopia CEO Shinta Dhanuwardoyo said the web portal would ease the process of business transactions between customers and businesses, particularly those classified as small and medium enterprises.

""As the content industry and the e-commerce industry in Indonesia are growing, the launch of an integrated service provided by Mojopia and Telkom, would allow business players and Internet users to create an ecosystem that is based on trust and commitment," Shinta said.

Mojopia is operated by Telkom's subsidiary, PT Metranet, and part of the company's new approach.

Telkom's strategy to expand its operation in non core business is its latest move in efforts to maintain its position as the number one company in the industry despite a current downturn and an expected flattening out in the telecoms business.

Non core businesses include media operations, entertainment, software applications development and various Internet services.

The shift to non core businesses supporting telecommunication services is encapsulated in a new logo.

To support its new ambitions, the company is currently in the process of divesting several companies where Telkom was not the majority shareholder and to acquire firms in the core business areas, information and communication technology.

Rinaldi refused to disclose the names of the firms to be acquired, but said it had set aside a budget of Rp 1 trillion (US$106 million) for the acquisitions.

Govt preparing Rp1.3 trillion for family of hope program

Antara News, Sunday, November 8, 2009 15:53 WIB

Yoyakarta (ANTARA News) - The government through the Ministry of Social Affairs is preparing a fund of Rp1.3 trillion to finance a Family of Hope Program (PKH) in 2010, a cabinet minister said.

"The funds are being prepared for 720,000 selected poor families. These families have to meet the condition before they could receive the assistance," Social Affairs Minister Salim Segaf Al Jufri said here on Sunday.

The minister said that the PKH program was part of the government`s efforts to reduce the number of poor people to 8-10 percent in the coming five years from 14-15 percent at present.

The PKH program is a scheme in which the government provides a cash to a very poor family (RTSM) based on certain categories in an effort to develop the country`s human resources in the field of education and health.

The target of the PKH program is an RSTM which has at least one family member at age between 0 and 15 years, or an expectant mother in selected region.

"The recipient of this program must be a mother or a women who is taking care of a child in the family concerned. This is intended to empower women," the minister said.

He said that the would-be recipients must sign an agreement which specified that they should sent children of 7-15 years to schools, or children of 16-18 years who had not yet finished their nine-year basic education.

Besides, they had also take children of 0-6 years to health care centers based on the health care procedures. Those who were pregnant were expected to check their health regularly based on the PKH procedures.

The minister said that the program had been carried out in a number of countries such as in Latin American nations. In Indonesia it had been started in 2007 and was expected to continue until 2015.

Papua to build 2,000-MW power plant

Mustaqim Adamrah, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta | Wed, 11/04/2009 11:06 AM

The Papua provincial administration is planning to build a 2,000 -megawatt (MW) hydro-power plant to meet electricity demand and to support infrastructure needs in Papua.

“We are finishing the feasibility studies for the hydro-power plant. [It requires] more than Rp 5 trillion [about US$525 million],” Papua Governor Barnabas Suebu said Tuesday after meeting with President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono.

“[The plant will eventually generate] 2,000 MW in total, but we’ll start with a 300-MW power plant and build it in steps.”

He said the administration would be one of the financiers in the hydro-power plant project, while also inviting other investors.

Barnabas, however, did not disclose the designated time for the studies to be completed or for the plant to commence operation.

Barnabas did not say whether the plan was part of 18 power plants slated to be built in the province by state utility company PT PLN during the 2007-2012 period.

PLN has said that the 18 power plants will include coal, hydro and micro-hydro plants, to meet power demand and lessen the province’s dependency on diesel-power.

The 18 power plants include the 19.2-MW Genyem hydro-power plant (expected to commence operation in 2010), two 10-MW coal-fired plants at Jayapura Baru (to commence operation in 2011-2012) and the 1.1-MW Amai micro-hydro-power plant (expected to commence operation in 2010).

Barnabas added that the power plant projects were just another example of how the resources-rich region is gearing up for a series of major development projects.

In addition to these electricity projects, Barnabas confirmed earlier statements by state officials over the establishment of a cement factory to help tackle a supply problem that often resulted in escalating cement prices in the region.

According to Industry Minister M.S. Hidayat, the US mining giant Freeport McMoran was among the investors interested in constructing a cement factory, worth about Rp 3 trillion.

Barnabas said that the construction of the cement factory would begin in 2010.

“What’s important is that good governance must be in place, infrastructure that supports investment, public support, security, and then other incentives for investment such as tax concessions and others,” he said.

In 2008, realized domestic investment reached Rp 5.7 trillion in Papua, while foreign investment totalled more than $5 billion.

UK eyes investment in renewable energy, power

Aditya Suharmoko, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta | Thu, 11/05/2009 10:31 AM

British companies are interested in investing in the renewable energy and electricity sectors here, Lord Davies of Abersoch, UK Minister for Trade, Investment and Small Business, said during his visit on Wednesday.

As one of the world’s leaders in renewable energy businesses, Lord Davies said British companies would want to expand here seeing the country had managed to cope fairly well with the global economic crisis.

“The minister of energy is very keen on that. And we discussed with him a range of ideas of how we can get more partnership between British and Indonesian companies on renewable energy,” he told reporters after meeting Energy and Mineral Resources Minister Darwin Z. Saleh.

Energy and Mineral Resources Ministry’s director general for electricity and use of energy J. Purwono pointed to British firm International Power Plc. which has shown interests in a 2x1,000 MW power plant project in Central Java.

“They want to become an IPP [independent power producer] for the 2x1,000 MW project in Central Java,” Purwono said.

As for renewable energy projects, he replied: “We are looking at locations to develop biomass and wind power, among others.”

The UK minister also met Industry Minister MS Hidayat and Trade Minister Mari Elka Pangestu to discuss increasing bilateral trade between the two countries. Lord Davies said he would invite Indonesian businesspeople to the UK to look for potential partners.

“We agree that we need a symposium on energy and the financing on infrastructure. And we also agree to work with the trade minister where we see examples of protectionism and market access problems,” he said.

Aside from energy and the power sector, British companies are interested in other sectors like life sciences, IT and retails, he said.

In the next few months Lord Davies plans to invite British companies including Royal Dutch Shell plc., BP plc., International Powerplc., Rolls-Royce Group plc. and Star Energy UK Onshore Ltd. to meet Indonesian ministers.

“The challenge for Indonesia is to simplify the regulations, cut the bureaucracy, and move with great speed on energy security, and inward investment,” he said.

According to UK Trade and Investment data, the UK exported about 391 million poundsterlings of goods last year to Indonesia, a 36 percent increase from 2007.

Exports between January and April this year reached 100 million poundsterlings.

The UK imported 1.14 billion poundsterlings of goods in 2008, a slight increase from almost 1 billion pounds sterling a year earlier. Between January and April this year it imported 435 million poundsterlings of goods.

“When you look around Asia … Asia is a collection of different countries with different stages of economic growth. Indonesia is a very exciting opportunity, it will become a key part of the global economy. It’s maturing, it’s growing and it is a very important trading nation now,” said Lord Davies.

Lord Davies plans to invite British companies to meet Indonesian ministers.

Related Article:

What Indonesia Can Expect from Investment with Britain

JBIC says to sign $1.6 bln loan for Indonesian power projects

Reuters, Thu Nov 5, 2009 6:29am EST

JAKARTA, Nov 5 (Reuters) - Japan Bank for International Cooperation (JBIC) expects to sign loan agreements for about $1.6 billion for the construction of two Indonesian coal-fired power plants this year, a senior executive said on Thursday.

Southeast Asia's biggest economy has struggled with power shortages and blackouts in recent years, but is attempting to ramp up electricity supplies through a crash programme led by the state power firm PLN and including independent power producers to build coal-fired power plants

Takanori Satake, the chief representative of JBIC operations in Indonesia, told Reuters JBIC expected to sign the loan agreements for the Paiton 3 expansion project and the Cirebon plant, both located on densely populated Java island, soon.

"We are likely to sign the loan agreement this year. We want it as soon as possible," Satake said, adding that JBIC's main focus is on projects in the power and natural resources sectors.

The Paiton 3 expansion project is developing an 815 megawatts (MW) coal-fired power plant and is scheduled to start operations in early 2012, while the Cirebon plant is expected to generate 660 MW and is scheduled to start operations in 2011.

Both of the projects attracted Japanese interest, with Mitsui & Co Ltd and Tokyo Electric Power Company (9501.T) involved in the Paiton 3 and Marubeni Corp (8002.T) in the Cirebon project.

The government launched the first phase of the programme to add 10,000 MW generating capacity from 35 new coal-fired power plants, which are mostly still under construction.

The government is still finalising the second phase of the crash programme to add another 10,000 MW using coal, geothermal and renewable energy resources. (Reporting by Andreas Ismar; Editing by Sara Webb)

City to build water pipeline from Jatiluhur dam

Indah Setiawati, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta | Wed, 11/04/2009 9:06 PM

The Jakarta Administration plans to build a pipeline connecting the Jatiluhur dam in Purwakarta, West Java, to one of the city’s water treatment facilities in Buaran, East Jakarta next year.

“We plan to process the raw water in Jatiluhur reservoir and channel the processed water through a pipe directly to [water operators in] Jakarta, Bekasi and Karawang. The water operators will then distribute the water to customers,” Governor Fauzi Bowo said Wednesday.

He said he would discuss the project with the Public Works Ministry this week to work out the financial costs, which were expected to be shouldered by the city, central government and private parties.

“The total investment is estimated to be about Rp 3 trillion. We hope the feasibility study will be completed by the middle of 2010 and the project can start by 2011,” he said.

The decision to build the pipeline was taken in part because of problems including increased pollution of raw water supplied to the city, expected higher demand for tap water, and increased competition for water for irrigation.

Fauzi said the raw water supply from Jatiluhur, had been contaminated by domestic and industrial pollution from the Tarum Barat canal, which brought the water to the city.

He said the recent increase in ground water tax would push some customers to switch to tap water, which would force the city to increase tap water supply.

This June he issued a gubernatorial decree on the new tax rate for groundwater, which ranged from six to 16 times the current tax rate, depending on the tax payers’ category, which included non-business entities as well as small and large businesses.

The policy aims to prevent further land subsidence in the city due to excessive groundwater extraction. According to data from the Jakarta Water Regulatory Body (BR PAM), the city could only fulfill 60 percent of the residents’ clean water needs. The remaining 40 percent is fulfilled by groundwater supply.

Indonesia Hosts Int'l Conference on Disaster Mitigation

Kompas, Tuesday, 3 November 2009

KOMPAS IMAGES/DHONI SETIAWAN

BANDUNG, KOMPAS.com - Indonesia will host an international training consortium for disaster mitigation in the health sector on November 16, 2009, the chief of the Health Ministry’s Crisis Management Center, Rustam Pakaya, said here on Tuesday. Rustam said delegations from at least 10 countries had confirmed their presence at the conference. Among the ten countries were Nepal, Sri Lanka, India, Bangladesh, Thailand, Myanmar, Timor Leste, Bhutan, Maldives, South Korea and Indonesia.

He said Indonesian participants of the conference would be the send chiefs and staffs of the Crisis Management Center’s branches in Jakarta, Palembang, Medan, Semarang, Banjarmasin, Denpasar, Manado, Makassar, Surabaya, Jayapura and Padang. Supported by the Medical Faculty of the University of Indonesia, the conference would be a forum for exchange of experience among its participants about ways to handle health crises after natural disasters.

"The meeting is expected to formulate a standard pattern for handling health crises occurring after disasters," said Rustam adding that Indonesia would also share its experience in managing crises from the series of natural disasters that had h hit Indonesia recently.

Meanwhile, a National Evaluation of Emergency Response and Health Crisis Recovery was opened on November 2 and to last until November 3, 2009. The meeting is participated in by 100 officials from related offices across Indonesia.

Chief of the organizing committee for the national evaluation, Dr Lucky Tjahjono, expected participants of the meeting will share the resultd of the evaluation to fellow Health Department officials in the regions.

Indonesia to spend $84 mln on solar energy in rural areas

People's daily Online, 13:40, November 02, 2009

Indonesian Energy and Mineral Resources Ministry announced that it would spend 800 billion rupiah (about 84 million U.S. dollars) to build solar power plants with a total capacity of 2,234 kilowatts-peak to expand access to electricity in rural areas next year, the Jakarta Globe reported here on Monday.

"The electricity produced by the plants will benefit 150,000 to 200,000 households in different parts of the country," Jacobus Purwono, the ministry's director general of electricity said.

The Kilowatts-peak is a measure used to describe maximum out putby a solar power plant under ideal conditions, expressed in kilowatts.

An estimated 84 million of the country's 240 million population have no access to electricity, Jacobus said.

This year, the government has allocated 600 billion rupiah (about 62.4 million dollars) to build solar plants for 100,000 people. Under the ministry's 2010-2014 power generation blueprint, it would build 250 solar-powered plants across the country, he added.

In addition, the government also planned to build 570 micro hydropower plants with a generating capacity of 45.6 megawatts, to set solar power generating panels for 192,000 homes and to build 270 wind power generator with a total power capacity of 21.67 MW.

Source: Xinhua

Google eyes more RI firms to sell web applications

The Jakarta Post, Jakarta | Tue, 11/03/2009 1:06 PM

Google Apps, a collection of online applications and utilities, is expanding in the Indonesia market as growing numbers of companies have opted for its premium services since their introduction late last year.

"Until today, more than 10 local companies have used Google premium web applications," said Putranto Yuwono, director of EB Connection, the local partner of Google recently.

"Another 10 companies have been expressing their interest to use these products," he added.

Putranto, however, refused to disclose whether there was any noted company among the 10 current users of Google web applications.

"One of our latest customers is coal mining firm PT Energi Kaltim Persada," he told The Jakarta Post.

Putranto said he was optimistic Google products would gain a significant market share in Indonesia.

Web Apps is considered one of the open source software providers with big prospects to replace more expensive propriety applications.

Firms can use hosted web applications for communication, productivity, and collaboration. Google Apps include Gmail, Google Calendar, Google Sites, and Google Docs.

Putranto said that all applications hosted by Google were available free to users, but with less features.

"Free users can access all of the basic functions. But for better business solutions, it may not enough," he said.

Google's email service, Gmail, for example, only provides real-time translation for premium users.

Premium users get 25 GB of inbox capacity while free user gets 7.4 GB.

The wave of migration from propriety software to open-source applications is now gaining momentum because open source provides cost efficiencies and helps avoid legal charges for piracy.

A noted IT expert Onno W. Purbo said recently most web applications do not require high-profile hardware and are more cost efficient.

Sharing Onno's views, Putranto said: "With only US$50 per user, you can do exactly the same as you can do with proprietary software that may cost up to $300."

Tan Bee Loon, a representative from Google Enterprise Southeast Asia, said that Google customers would also benefit from continuous innovation as Google would still keep developing the products being used.

"There are so many benefits, like real-time translation when opening email through Gmail," he said.

Tan highlighted the ability of Google Apps in collaborative working both between applications and between different users, enhanced emailing systems, and system security.

Putranto explained: "Google Apps enable company's employees to work on a single project simultaneously from their own laptops. We have also cooperated with a number of cellular phone providers to provide calendar-based reminder services.

"*Once the reminder service is used* the users will get text messages reminding them about their appointments which they originally filed on Google calendar," Putranto said. (bbs)

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Big boys going open-source to cut costs

Sanyo, Hino may invest $100m early in 2010 for expansion

Mustaqim Adamrah, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta | Tue, 11/03/2009 9:24 AM

Early next year the country may see two separate investments worth US$100 million in total from two Japanese companies, Hino and Sanyo, Industry Minister M.S. Hidayat said Monday.

“At the beginning of next January, I will inaugurate new investment in two industrial sectors, electronics and trucks, both from Japan,” he said at the State Palace after reporting the results of the 2009 National Summit held last week.

“The two investments will together total $100 million.”

He said the two companies have agreed to invest in market expansion because of the largely “conducive” business climate here.

Hidayat added he would go to Japan early next year as part of the investment planning process.

These statements confirm previous reports saying that PT Hino Indonesia Manufacturing plans to spend $17 million in investment to triple its truck production capacity from 10,000 units to 30,000 units per year by expanding its existing factory in Purwakarta, West Java.

“This investment will materialize as soon as this year’s end, if not in 2010,” the Industry Ministry’s director for land and military transportation industries Panggah Susanto said previously.

He said Hino planned initially to realize its plan in 2008 but had to delay it because of the negative impacts of the global economic downturn, which previously held back the real sector.

“They delayed their investment implementation until now because they wanted to see out the crisis situation first,” he said.

Panggah said the government would push Hino, which would expand not only its truck production but also the production of its supporting components, to use more local content components.

Hino produces dump trucks and head trucks, among other types.

Established in 1982, Hino is controlled by its parent company Hino Motors ltd with 40 percent, local automaker and distributor of imported cars PT Indomobil Sukses International with 40 percent and Sumitomo Corporation with 20 percent.

There are no details as yet as to Sanyo’s planned investment.

In September, a large delegation of Japanese investors came to Indonesia to meet then industry minister Fahmi Idris.

During the meeting, the delegation said Japanese investors who already have established in Indonesia planned to boost their investment by up to $1 billion here over the next five years to strengthen their market positioning in the country.

According to latest Indonesian government record, there are 875 Japanese companies currently operating in Indonesia, with a total investment of $11 billion, employing more than 282,000 workers.

Energy-saving Villages

TEMPO Interactive, 02 November, 2009 | 14:12 WIB

TEMPO Interactive, Sleman: Two villages in Sleman, Ngentak and Plupuh, located in Cangkringan sub district, became the pilots of PT Philips’ national energy-saving Bright Villages project. As of October this year, residents in these two villages use energy-saving light bulbs.

“The previous electricity bills of the two villages during May – July 2009 were Rp 5,6 million. After using energy-saving light bulbs, the bill went down to Rp 4,5 million,” said PT Philips manager for distribution in Yogyakarta, Freddy S. Budiman, yesterday.

PITO AGUSTIN RUDIANA

Shell to review subsidized fuel distribution offer

Alfian, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta | Mon, 11/02/2009 1:47 PM

PT Shell Indonesia, the local subsidiary of global energy company Royal Dutch Shell, is reviewing a mandate offered by government to distribute subsidized fuels outside its existing distribution network in 2010.

Downstream oil and gas regulator BPHMigas has already chosen Shell to distribute up to 5,110 kilo liters a year, or 14 kilo liters a day of Premium gasoline in Medan, North Sumatra in 2010.

"Our proposal is to distribute the subsidized fuels in areas that include Java and Bali, but BPHMigas has opened up an opportunity outside Java.

"Of course, this will impact on our business plan. Therefore, we are now reviewing this," Shell Indonesia's president director Darwin Silalahi told reporters last Friday.

Darwin said Shell would be in talks with BPHMigas about this and would expect to complete the discussion soon.

Shell currently operates 41 fuel stations and all of them are located in Java.

The appointment may require the company to open new fuel stations in Medan.

"*To be* given a chance outside Java is a good sign for us, but we also want to open up access for customers in all areas," he added.

State oil and gas company PT Pertamina has so far been the sole distributor of the subsidized fuels.

But, for 2010, BPHMigas has appointed three private companies to join Pertamina in distributing the subsidized fuels.

The three companies are: Shell, PT Aneka Kimia Raya Corporindo (AKR), and PT Petronas Niaga Indonesia.

But, the three companies are only allowed to distribute the fuels in limited volume and limited areas, all of which are outside Java and Bali.

AKR has been chosen to distribute up to 109,162 kilo liters a year of diesel, or 299 kilo liters a day, in Medan, Deli Serdang, Binjai, Metro, Central Lampung, East Lampung, South Lampung, North Lampung, Bandar Lampung, Pontianak, and Banjarmasin.

Petronas meanwhile has been chosen to distribute up to 20,440 kilo liters per day of Premium, or 56 kilo liters a day, in Medan.

BPHMigas's chairman Tubagus Haryono said that the three companies were appointed outside Java to help the country to build up subsidized fuels distribution infrastructures in more distant areas.

"We want that the infrastructure not only be concentrated in Java, but also in more distant areas," he said in a text message.

Tubagus added that AKR and Petronas had sent letters saying that they would accept the appointment. BPHMigas is waiting for the same letter from Shell.

"If the letter is not sent, the company will be removed *from the list of distributors*," Tubagus said.

The government subsidizes Premium gasoline, diesel and kerosene.

Under the 2010 state budget bill, the government estimates that subsidized fuel consumption next year will reach 21,454,104 kiloliters for Premium gasoline; 11,250,675 kiloliters for diesel and 3,800,000 kiloliters for kerosene.

For the budget year 2010, Rp 69 trillion ($7.34 billion) has been allocated to fuel subsidies, up from Rp 54.3 trillion this year.

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Provinces Asked to Develop E-Governance

Friday, 30 October, 2009 | 16:19 WIB

TEMPO Interactive, Surakarta:Progress in technology requires the government to continue improving and adapting their governance systems. One of the efforts is to implement e-government. The Agency for the Assessment & Application of Technology’s (BPPT) information technology and communication center director, Tatang Taufik, said the agency is encouraging every province to develop an e-government system. “We are now initiating e-government in Surakarta, Pekalongan, Purwakarta, Bogor, Kendal, and Banyuwangi," he said, announcing the establishment of e-government in Surakarta yesterday.

According to Tatang, the use of digital technology will improve public services.

UKKY PRIMARTANTYO

Govt pitches in support for micro financing, sets aside guarantee funds

Mustaqim Adamrah, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta | Fri, 10/30/2009 9:40 AM

Aiming to accelerate the development of micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs), the government will allocate Rp 2 trillion (US$202 million) each year over the next five years as a guarantee for them to secure bank loans.

Access to financing has been one of the major obstacles for the industry to grow, and this is what this fund — which could guarantee lending of up to Rp 20 trillion a year — is expected to change, President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono said Thursday.

“Every year, there will be Rp 20 trillion in funding [for MSMEs], with Rp 2 trillion to be set aside from the state budget as a guarantee,” he said at the opening of the 2009 National Economic Summit.

“In five years, there will be Rp 100 trillion in funding in a scheme to help provide micro and small enterprises with working capital.”

Yudhoyono, however, also underlined that prospective borrowers should be creative and have a sense of entrepreneurship, calling for a reform in the national educational system to help students develop their entrepreneurial skills.

In the future, he said, students who had undergone 12 years of schooling were expected to become not so much “job seekers” as “job creators”.

He lamented the low number of entrepreneurs in Indonesia, less than 1 percent of total population, compared to the United States and Singapore with 15 percent and 7 percent.

MSMEs are one of six economic topics being discussed at the two-day summit being held at the Ritz-Carlton Pacific Place.

The summit is being jointly hosted by the government and the Indonesian Chamber of Commerce and Industry (Kadin) to hear suggestions from all stakeholders in the economy to help shape the country’s next five-year economic plan.

Sandiago Uno, Kadin’s deputy chairman for micro, small and medium enterprises and cooperatives, said the chamber expected the government to establish a micro financing institution to make it easier for micro borrowers to access loans.

So far, micro borrowers have received Rp 14 trillion under the government’s micro loan program (KUR) this year, out of a total Rp 20 trillion earmarked in the 2009 state budget, Sandiago said.

The government disbursed Rp 12.5 trillion in KUR loans last year, out of Rp 14 trillion allocated in the 2008 state budget.

KUR loans are channeled through BNI, Bank Mandiri, BRI, BPD, Bank Syariah Mandiri and Bank Bukopin.

Related Article:

Mismanagement slows Jakarta's SME loan distribution

Job seekers to enjoy online permit system

Indah Setyawati, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta | Thu, 10/29/2009 4:19 PM

Jakarta Manpower and Transmigration Agency is cooperating with a website to create an online system to simplify the process of making the yellow cards for job seekers at a job fair.

The job fair will be held at the Trisakti University student halls in Grogol, West Jakarta on Nov. 21 and 22.

Kartini, head of the Manpower Placement division at the agency, said five subagencies in five municipalities would be on duty during the job fair to serve the online yellow card applicants.

The yellow card is one of main requirements the job seekers need to apply for jobs in formal sectors such as industry and governmental institutions. Several companies still require applicants to show their yellow card.

She said applicants could fill in their data on the Visijobs.com website and print out their proof of registration letter. The letter should be brought to the job fair, where officials would print the yellow card, stamp it and attach the applicants' photograph.

"We are providing this service to make it easier for job seekers meeting expected employers during the fair," Kartini said.

Kartini said the agency would apply the online system to attain yellow card in every subagency in 2010. Currently, it was still in the middle of the procurement process, but she expected the system to be available in subdistrict offices in 2011.