RI'S BIGGEST PORT TO BE BUILT IN NORTH JAKARTA

By Andi Abdussalam

Jakarta, May 4 (ANTARA) - The government is planning to build the country's biggest harbour in an effort to expand and increase the capacity of the current Tanjung Priok Port in North Jakarta from 5 million to 18 million twenty-foot equivalent units (TEU) of containers.          The commencement of this groundbreaking construction is scheduled next July, when the first phase of the New Priok Port will be constructed on a 195-hectare plot of land located in North Jakarta's Kalibaru area.          State-owned port operator PT Pebuhan Indonesia II (IPC II) will begin construction on the New Priok Port after it receives a copy of the Presidential Regulation No. 36/2012 containing development recommendations for the port, the first phase of which is expected to cost about US$2.47 billion.          "With the issuance of the presidential regulation, we can now make preparations for the construction of New Priok Port," said IPC President Director Richard Joost Lino.          According to the IPC II website, IPC II has officially received a copy of the presidential regulation which mandates IPC II to build and operate the Kalibaru Port (New Priok Port) in North Jakarta.          In implementing Presidential Regulation No. 36/2012, which was signed by the president on April 5, 2012, the IPC II will invest some Rp22.55 trillion, or US$2.47 billion, in the first phase of construction.          The project's first phase will include the installation of container terminal infrastructure and related equipment worth US$1.38 billion, while a further US$730 million will be made available for constructing a new petroleum product terminal in the port.          According to Lino, IPC II is enthusiastic about the project and believes that it will rise up to the challenge offered by the presidential instruction to make Indonesia's dream come true - that is, to build a port that the country can be proud of.           IPC II's challenge is to build the port without funding support from the government or the state budget. "It does not involve a state budget fund. The funds will come from the investors and be facilitated by PT Pengembangan Indonesia, a subsidiary of the IPC II," Lino added.          IPC II may also raise funds for the port by forging partnerships with and receiving investments from major shipping and port operators as well as loans from national and international lenders.          The New Priok Port will be built to alleviate the load on the currently over-burdened Tanjung Priok Port. Therefore, the New Priok Port's construction will be accelerated to reduce the old port's burden by about 1 million TEU containers.         Upon its completion in 2023, the New Priok Port will more than triple the annual capacity of Tanjung Priok Port, from 5 million TEU to 18 million TEU.         Lino remarked that the construction of the New Priok Port, which was previously called Kalibaru Port, will elevate Indonesia's reputation to the level of countries with international scale ports.          The IPC II has already provided the various requisite documents to the government, and after receiving approval, it will enter the final stage of preparation. Lino explained that the master plan of the port includes three container terminals, two oil and gas fuel terminals, and a 300-m wide two-way shipping lane.          According to Lino, the first phase of port construction will be carried out on 195 hectares of land, with the length of piers reaching 4,000 metres. In the first phase, the port will be able to accommodate 4.5 million TEU containers.         "When all of its three phases are completed, the total capacity of New Priok Port will reach 13 million TEU" Lino remarked. It is expected that phase one of port construction will be completed and operational by 2014. The entire port, from phases one to three, is expected to be operational by 2023.         The New Priok Port is expected to facilitate the movement of large ships, so that ships of EEE class (with a capacity of 18,000 TEU containers) can sail directly to Indonesia without needing to undergo transshipment in other countries. This, in turn, will help reduce transportation and logistics costs.          For this purpose, the 300-m two-way lane in the piers of the port will be dredged as deep as -16 mLWS during the first phase and as deep as -20 mLWS in the subsequent phases of the port's construction.         Thus, at present and in the future, the New Priok Port is expected to be as productive as other international seaports in the world which are able to accommodate the largest container ships.          With a port of this capacity, Indonesia is expected to attract more investors. The presence of the New Priok Port will help strengthen the national logistics flow, thus attracting investors to Indonesia.          "It should be noted that this is the biggest harbour in Indonesia," Lino added.***2*** (T.A014/INE/A/E002) 04-05-2012 18:17: