RI INTRODUCES GREEN CARS AT APEC

By Andi Abdussalam

Jakarta, Oct 4 (Antara) - While hosting the current APEC Summit in Bali, Indonesia, which is developing electric and bio-fuel powered vehicles, is introducing its green vehicles to delegates by fielding eco-friendly buses to transport those in attendance.          The Indonesian government has provided 100 biodiesel-powered buses to transport the flow of delegates and journalists at the meeting venue in the Nusa Dua area, located in the country's tourist resort province of Bali.           The four state institutions involved in the launching of the green cars are the Ministry of Trade, Ministry of Finance, Ministry of Industry, and the Capital Investment Coordinating Board (BKPM).          "The use of biodiesel buses reflects Indonesia's commitment to establishing a green economy," said Industry Minister MS Hidayat during the launch of the buses on Friday.           Apart from helping the environment, the use of green products such as biodiesel, coming from Indonesia's palm oil plantations, can lead to the creation of more jobs," he added.           It was noted that in the development of environmentally friendly vehicles the government involved the country's businesses.           According to Wisnu Wardhana, chairman of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation's Business Advisory Council (ABAC), the government and businesses are working closely to ensure energy sustainability to support Indonesia's commitment to the continuation of sustainable development programmes.          He said that the 100 eco-friendly buses were powered by a combination of palm oil fuel and electricity.          Industry Minister MS Hidayat noted that the launch of environmentally friendly cars reflects the government's commitment to the usage of green vehicles, starting at the APEC Summit in Bali.

IIMS SHOWCASES LATEST AUTOMOTIVE TECHNOLOGY

By Andi Abdussalam

Jakarta, Sept 24 (Antara) - The nine-day Indonesia International Motor Show (IIMS) 2013, being held at the JI-Expo Kemayoran, Central Jakarta, until September 29, 2013, is showcasing automotive products developed using the latest technology.           Johnny Darmawan, chief organiser of the IIMS 2013, who is also the co-chairman of the Indonesian Motor Vehicle Industries Association (Gaikindo), said this year's IIMS is an exhibition of the latest technological innovations in the automotive sector.           "We are showcasing the latest technological innovations in the automotive sector and intend to transform the IIMS into a platform for automotive experts to meet and exchange ideas," said Johnny. He expects this year's IIMS transaction to be higher than last year, when the value stood at Rp4 trillion.           Industry Minister MS Hidayat said the automotive exposition is expected to convey to the public that amid the economic slowdown, the real sector, particularly the automotive sector, is not adversely affected.           "I want to prove through this expo that the real sector, automotive in particular, is not disturbed," added MS Hidayat while receiving the organisers of IIMS 2013.           Darmawan pointed out that a total of 36 automotive agents and 276 supporting industries are taking part in the show, and there will be 300 exhibition stands.          Automotive companies taking part in the IIMS 2013 include Toyota, Honda, Mitsubishi, and Daihatsu.

RI'S LOW-COST CARS TO TARGET EXPORT MARKET

By Andi Abdussalam
Jakarta, Sept 21 (Antara) - The question of who will purchase Indonesia's new inexpensive automobiles became a focus of discussions following Jakarta Governor Joko Widodo's objection that cheaper cars will only worsen the capital city's traffic problems.          Indonesia is en enormous market for auto sales as it has 33 provinces with a population of about 240 million people.          So if Jakarta is already considered to be a city 'packed' with vehicles and terrible traffic jams, then new cars --which will be built based upon the government's low-cost and green car (LCGC) program-- could be sold to customers in regions other than Jakarta.          Yet, there is no guarantee that Jakartans will not purchase green cars, which are expected to be sold at Rp95 million per unit.       Jakarta Governor Joko Widodo, popularly known as 'Jokowi', recently sent a letter to Vice President Boediono regarding the government's LCGC policy, which he fears would worsen traffic problems in the city.

CAR INDUSTRY MAY FACE SLOWDOWN NEXT YEAR

By Andi Abdussalam

Jakarta, Dec 12 (ANTARA) - Experts have predicted that the automotive industry will see slower growth next year due to rising wages, falling commodity prices, an increase in the minimum down-payment requirement for motor vehicles, and a protracted global economic crisis.          According to industry players, the Indonesian automotive market will grow at less than 10 percent in 2013.         "I think the market will grow but not at the current rate. It will very likely be below 10 percent per annum," said Rizwan Alamsjah, the executive marketing director of PT Krama Yudha Tiga Berlian Motor, Mitsubishi¿s sole agent in Indonesia, in Bali on Monday.          He noted that Indonesia might be able to maintain its economic growth rate next year, but it would face many challenges, such as weakening commodity markets, both at home and abroad.       Rizwan's opinion was shared by Prijono Sugiarto, the president director of PT Astra International. "Commodity prices are expected to drop while the global economic condition is unlikely to improve. Additionally, labour wages will increase, but the global market condition is deteriorating," he said while speaking at a workshop on automotive industry in Bandung, West Java, recently.

GOVT HOPES TO ACCELERATE PRODUCTION OF GREEN CARS

By Andi Abdussalam

Jakarta, Sept 20 (ANTARA) - After setting a target in July this year to begin mass production of about 10,000 electric cars by 2014, the government has announced its plans to speed up the development of low-cost and green cars (LCGC).          "We are now waiting for the President to issue a presidential decree. We expect that it will soon be issued in the coming few days," Industry Minister MS Hidayat said.          With a price of not more than US$10,000 (Rp100 million) per unit, LCGC cars will be produced in an effort to reduce fuel oil subsidies provided for conventional vehicles, which burden the state budget.          "Therefore, the government is planning to accelerate the development of green car projects," Hidayat said during the launch of Toyota Agya and Daihatsu Ayla cars on Wednesday.          "The marketing strategies of Toyota and Daihatsu for the Indonesian market are in line with the government's commitment to developing LCGC cars," he added.         Earlier, President Yudhoyono also expressed concern over the fuel subsidy burden and called for stepping up efforts to develop green cars.          "We want to move faster and accelerate what we can accelerate," he told a limited cabinet meeting that discussed the development of environmentally friendly cars at the Presidential office on Wednesday.          "The rising consumption of subsidized gasoline has burdened the national budget and rendered the subsidy ineffective," the President said.          In the 2012 revised state budget, fuel oil subsidies were set at 40 million kilolitres (worth Rp137.5 trillion). Every increase of 1 million kilolitres will raise the budget by Rp3 trillion. Thus, an additional subsidy of 4 million kilolitres of fuel would cost the state Rp12 trillion.          The head of state expressed hope that green cars would help reduce demand for gasoline so the funds for subsidising fuel could be used instead for the welfare of the poor.          He pointed out that green cars could also help reduce air pollution, especially the levels of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere.          Therefore, Industry Ministry MS Hidayat said President Yudhoyono would soon issue a decree on the development of green or environmentally friendly cars later this year.          "Hopefully, it will be issued in a month," he said after attending the limited cabinet meeting on green car development at the Presidential office.     According to Hidayat, the decree will outline instructions relating to research and development of green cars.          "Various stakeholders, including the government, higher-learning institutes, national economic committee and industries, are in the process of preparing a draft of the decree," he stated.          President Yudhoyono said at the recent APEC meeting in Russia that he had spoken with South Korean President Lee Myung Bak about cooperation in manufacturing electric cars.          "When I met with Lee Myung Bak during the APEC forum in Ldivostok, Russia, I discussed the possibility of Indonesia and South Korea cooperating in the production of electric cars. President Lee hailed it," he added.          Commenting on the proposed plan to cooperate with South Korea in developing green cars, Hidayat said the industry ministry was still examining the plan.          "We have yet to decide it. We are still studying whether the cooperation with Korea will be business-to-business. If so, then who will represent Korea?" he added.         "Besides that, we also need to cooperate with Japan in developing our car component industry. After all, Toyota and Daihatzu launched Agya and Ayla cars, respectively, in which a lot of local components have been used," Hidayat pointed out.          "The localisation of Toyota Agya and Daihatsu Ayla cars has reached 84 percent. This is an encouraging achievement. Toyota and Daihatzu are expected to ask their sub-contractors in Japan to only invest in components which cannot be produced in Indonesia," he said.          Therefore, the industry minister expressed hope that Japanese car component producers could expand their business in Indonesia so more local components would be available for LCGC production.          "We hope that the automotive car component industry will develop here in line with the green car programme, so the components that are still being imported can be produced at home," Hidayat said during a hearing of the House of Representatives (DPR) Commission VI on trade and industry affairs.          "The development of a local components industry will help in the production of indigenous LCGC components," he noted.          "Sole agents should provide better opportunities for the component industry so it can help speed up automobile production in the country," Hidayat stated.          "The rising sales of motor vehicles - both two- and four-wheelers - indicate good prospects for this industry in the country," he added.          According to Budi Darmadi, the Industry Ministry's director general for high-technology priority industries, the government wants to develop the car component industry in order to boost its annual car sales to about 1 million units by 2014.          Four-wheel vehicle sales in 2011 stood at 890,000 units, while the corresponding figure for two-wheel vehicles was 8,000,000 units.          "Reinforcing the structure of the country's car component industry will be carried out in both the upstream and downstream sectors in order to reduce the importation of a number of components. We will develop a technology system so these important components can be produced at home and the assembly industry's expenses can be reduced," Budi said.    (T.A014/A/KR-BSR/F001) 20-09-2012 14:35: