Tag: Indonesia

  • Manila Water to submit scaled-up proposals in projects in both Myanmar and Indonesia

    Manila Water to submit scaled-up proposals in projects in both Myanmar and Indonesia

    Manila Water the water concessionaire for the East Zone of Metro Manila, said it would submit scaled-up proposals within the third quarter of the year for possible water concessions in Myanmar and Indonesia following the completion of its pilot projects.

    In a news briefing after the firm’s annual stockholders’ meeting, the company’s Chief Operating Officer for New Business Operations Virgilio Rivera Jr. said these proposals will be for Yangon City in Myanmar and Bandung City in Indonesia.

    Rivera said the company submitted their report for the successful pilot project that drastically reduces the nonrevenue water in Yangon and expect to complete a similar pilot project in Bandung City, the capital of West Java.

    “With the completion of these pilot projects, we have shown them our best practices and are now ready to propose a scaled-up version,” Rivera said.

    The company’s new President and CEO Ferdinand de la Cruz said it is ready to take on much bigger projects in these cities to the extent of a full-scale water concession like what they have in the East Service Zone of Metro Manila. De la Cruz said the company’s expansion into countries in Southeast Asia will contribute to their goal of achieving a net income of P11.5 billion by 2020 and that half of this should come from businesses other than its Metro Manila concession, currently its single-biggest revenue generator.

    Rivera said the company intends to do more pilot projects in other parts of the Philippines and Southeast Asia as local government units and water districts are more receptive to tapping Manila Water based on its Metro Manila experience.

    In Yangon it partnered with Mitsubishi Corp. to adopt two district metering areas located in South Okkalapa and Insein.

    By the end of 2016, nonrevenue levels in both townships dropped to 14 percent from 54 percent.

    For Bandung, Indonesia’s fourth-largest city, a population of 2.4 million, the company has reduced non-revenue water from a high of 59 percent in September last year to 23 percent in just three months.

    Inc., Rivera said they have also been tapped by SM Development Corp. for five residential projects and will be signing up for five more by early next year.

  • Indonesia`s exports up 15.68 percent in March 2017

    Indonesia`s exports up 15.68 percent in March 2017

    Indonesias exports were up 15.68 percent in March, from US$12.61 billion in the previous month to $14.59 billion, according to Central Bureau of Statistics (BPS) here on Monday.

    BPS chief Suhariyanto stated at a press conference that the hike was dominated by an increase in the non-oil and gas exports reaching $13.11 billion, or up 14.86 percent, from the previous month.

    “The export value in March 2017 was recorded at $14.59 billion, up 15.68 percent from Feb. Compared to March 2016, the hike reached 23.55 percent,” he noted.

    The hike in the non-oil and gas exports in March was contributed by an increase in the exports of mineral fuels reaching $459.4 million, or 32.84 percent, he noted, adding that the exports of chemical products were down 9.05 percent, or $31.8 million.

    Non-oil and gas export destination countries in March 2017 include China, with exports to the country reaching $1.7 billion; the US, reaching $1.51 billion; and Japan, recorded at $1.26 billion. All of them contributed 34.72 percent of the total exports. Exports to Europe or 28 countries reached $1.46 billion.

    In total, Indonesias exports from Jan to March 2017 reached $40.61 billion, or rose 20.84 percent from the same period in 2016.

    Non-oil and gas exports in the period were recorded at $36.66 billion, comprising 90.27 percent of the countrys total exports.

    In terms of sectors, exports from processing industries from Jan to March 2017 rose 19.93 percent from the same period in 2016, while agricultural exports jumped 22.84 percent and mining products and others rose 32.26 percent.

    With region provinces of origin, most of the countrys exports were from West Java, valued at $7.00 billion, or 17.23 percent of the total; followed by East Java at $4.43 billion, or 10.90 percent; and Riau at $4.40 billion, or 10.83 percent.

    Indonesias non-oil and gas markets in the period from Jan to March 2017 include China, worth $4.96 billion, or 12.79 percent; the US, worth $4.29 billion, or 11.70 percent; and India, worth $3.41 billion, or 9.29 percent.

  • Cloud Services in Indonesia Provided by Japan’s Leading Network Solutions

    Cloud Services in Indonesia Provided by Japan’s Leading Network Solutions

    FPT Telecom of Vietnam and Internet Initiative Japan on Thursday launched a cloud computing service for individual, business and enterprise customers in Vietnam.

    FPT Telecom has called the new service, FPT HI GIO Cloud, the first full-scale, full-spectrum and quality cloud computing service in Vietnam. Nguyen Van Khoa, general director of FPT Telecom, which is part of leading Vietnamese information technology group FPT, stressed the new service would provide access computing services via a stable network.

    The product enables users to quickly launch virtual machines instead of investing in physical devices.”We will lead the market in Vietnam to tap demand for cloud computing,” General Director of IIJ Global Solutions Vietnam Ryo Matsumoto told Retail News.

    FPT Telecom aims to acquire around 4,000 enterprise customers within a year. FPT Telecom and IIJ also aim to tap individual customers in a country where 70% of the more than 90 million population is expected to have access to the internet by 2020.

    IIJ, one of Japan’s leading internet and network solutions providers, has already launched similar cloud services in Singapore, Indonesia, and Thailand. FPT Telecom and IIJ are looking to launch additional joint projects related to security and network management in the coming years, according to Matsumoto.

    In Vietnam global players such as IBM, Google, Symantec, Amazon, Oracle and Microsoft have launched their own cloud and joint services by teaming up with local telecom companies and using mobile broadband infrastructure. FPT and IIJ’s partnership will further intensify competition in this area.

    Vietnam ranked 14th in the Asia-Pacific region in the Asia Cloud Computing Association’s Cloud Readiness Index 2016, coming after Singapore, Malaysia, Thailand, the Philippines and Indonesia.

  • Garuda Indonesia Posts USD 9.36mn Profit

    Garuda Indonesia Posts USD 9.36mn Profit

    Flag carrier PT Garuda Indonesia (Persero) posted a net profit of USD 9.36 million, or IDR 124.5 billion, as of the end of 2016, as flight frequency increases by 9.89 percent to 274,969 flights from 249,974 in 2015.

    “The increase in flight frequency was in line with the company’s effort to expand both domestic and international flights,” Garuda Indonesia Vice President of Corporate Communication Benny S. Butarbutar said in a written statement received in Jakarta on Wednesday, April 12, 2017.

    In 2016, the company carried 35 million passengers by both Garuda Indonesia and its subsidiary Citilink Indonesia. Garuda Indonesia Group also recorded increase in ancillary revenue, strategic business unit (SBU) revenue, as well as other sectors at US$392 million or a 13.7 percent increase compared to 2015 at US$344.4 million.

    The press release stated that Garuda Indonesia’s on time performance (OTP) in 2016 was recorded at 89.51 percent, an increase compared to the previous year at 88 percent. The OTP figure was achieved despite challenges in developing aviation operational infrastructures, such as service migration to newly opened Terminal 3 of Soekarno-Hatta Airport and weather-related force majeure.

    The average occupancy rate in 2016 was 73.1 percent for Garuda and 76.8 percent for Citilink. As for air cargo business, Garuda Indonesia managed to improve air cargo transport to 415.824 tons, or an 18.22 percent increase compared to 2015 at 351.724 tons.

    All in all, the total air cargo revenue in 2016 amounted to US$219.15 million or a 16.65 percent increase compared to 2015 at US$187.87 million. In 2016, Garuda Indonesia Group added its flight capacity as part of fleet revitalization by purchasing 17 aircraft, namely four ATR 72-600 aircraft, four A330-300 aircraft, one B777-300ER aircraft and eight A330-200 aircraft. As such, as of the end of 2016, Garuda Indonesia Group operates 196 aircraft with an average age of 4.6 years.

  • Game marketplace “itemku” has raised USD 1.2 Million

    Game marketplace “itemku” has raised USD 1.2 Million

    Five Jack (fivejack.com), a company that operates an e-commerce game platform called itemku (itemku.com) for gamers in Indonesia, recently raised an additional investment of USD 1.2 million.

    On April 10th 2017, Five Jack announced to have raised investments from 500 Startups and Korean venture capitals, an addition to investments made by BonAngels in 2014 and 500 Startups in 2015. This adds to an accumulated total investment of nearly USD 1.7 million.

    Denis Kim, CEO of Five Jack, commented that itemku’s rapid growth averaging 30% a month is what attracts new and existing investors to back the company. “Our team has extensive experience in the local game market in Indonesia and Southeast Asia, an industry that has high growth potential in the near future.”

    With a population of 250 million, Indonesia is an emerging market where the e-commerce-based tech industry has been growing rapidly in the past few years.

    Five Jack was founded in South Korea and Indonesia in 2013 and currently operates game e-commerce platform, itemku, in Indonesia.

    In March, Five Jack launched a trial version of gokil (gokil.me), a service developed to identify the potential development of game community in Indonesia. The service is building on the existing customer base of hardcore gamers that itemku has secured.

    In the second half of 2017, Five Jack plans to expand its presence in Southeast Asia while keep growing their business in Indonesia.

    “Indonesia, where Five Jack is currently focusing its business efforts on, is a market with great potential. Success in Indonesia directly depends on the company’s ability to localize its business and tailor their service to adapt to the local market. I expect Five Jack to grow and become one of the top game communities, not only in Indonesia, but also in Southeast Asia in general,” said Kim-Jong-kap, Chief Executive Director of K-ICT Born2Global Centre, a startup incubator in South Korea.

    More information about Five Jack, including recruitment information, can be found on the company’s website (fivejack.com).

  • Papua releases export containers to China

    Papua releases export containers to China

    The Papua provincial government, facilitated by the Indonesian ship management PT. Pelindo IV, has released 100 containers of forest products to China.

    President Director of PT Pelindo IV, Doso Agung, said in a statement received by ANTARA here on Tuesday that the exported containers released by the Governor of Papua, Lukas Enembe, along with the Board of Directors of Pelindo IV, is expected to bring in a revenue to Rp20 billion (or about US$1.5 million).

    Doso stated that Pelindo IV will continue to carry direct export to transport Papua’s commodity crops to a number of countries.

    “Direct export is expected to stimulate the economy in regions where the Pelindo IV operates. We will boost the direct exports, particularly in the ports managed by Pelindo IV,” he noted, adding that the Papua provincial administration will provide ships from Australia to open seaweed markets.

    The release event was followed by a groundbreaking of the Jayapura seaport extension development in order to increase the capacity of the port.

    Enembe appreciated Pelindo IV for engaging in direct overseas export.

    Lukas hoped the direct export will immediately open up overseas market for Papuas commodities, and the area can attract investors.

    He also hoped that the direct export would not only include forest products but also other commodities in Papua such as coffee, cocoa, and fisheries.

  • Alibaba Group’s UC News crosses 100 mn active users in India, Indonesia

    Alibaba Group’s UC News crosses 100 mn active users in India, Indonesia

    Alibaba Mobile Business Group-owned company UCWeb’s news app UC News has garnered more than 100 million monthly active users (MAUs) in India and Indonesia. With 100 million daily article views, UC News has rapidly grown in the India and Indonesia markets since its launch in June 2016.

    UCWeb is increasing its focus on digital content aggregation and distribution in India, the world’s second-largest internet market.

    Talking about the latest milestone, Alibaba Mobile Business Group, president of overseas business, Jack Huang said, “We are experiencing a fast rise in the average time spent on UC News. As of this quarter, an average user spends over 23 minutes on UC News. Users are embracing diverse digital content and their appetite for such content is being met by UC News. Going forward, we are also targeting more diversified and localised content on our platform by end of 2017 to make the local content ecosystem stronger. With over 100 million MAUs, UCWeb envisions itself as powerful as Google and Facebook, and aims to bring the global mobile internet to an era of ‘GUF’ (Google, UCWeb and Facebook).”

    Leading the user-generated content ecosystem in India, UC News recently announced We-Media Reward Plan 2.0 for self-publishers, bloggers and independent writers with an initial investment of Rs 50 million. UCWeb is investing Rs 2 billion for driving content distribution in India over the next two years.

    With the changing mobile internet landscape, UCWeb has adopted a strategy of becoming a content distribution platform from being a browsing tool by engaging and aggregating diverse form of content on its platforms—UC Browser and UC News.

    According to web analytics firm StatCounter, UC Browser now holds the highest browser market share in India. UC Browser is now the most popular browser in India in terms of internet usage across all platforms, with a market share of 43.31%, followed by Chrome’s 36.07% and Opera’s 8.34% share. UC Browser is also the dominant browser for mobile internet in India with over 100 million MOUs (as of September 2016).

    According to StatCounter, internet usage in India by desktop and tablet fell from 33.2% in January 2016 to 21% this year. Mobile internet usage jumped from 66.8% to 79% over the same time period.

  • UL wire, cable laboratory inaugurated in North Jakarta

    UL wire, cable laboratory inaugurated in North Jakarta

    A United States safety consulting and certification company, Underwriters Laboratories (UL), inaugurated on Tuesday a wire and cable laboratory operated by its subsidiary, PT UL International Indonesia, in North Jakarta as part of its business expansion in Southeast Asia.

    UL commercial and industrial business president Ben Miller said after the inauguration ceremony that the company had chosen Indonesia for the laboratory’s location because of the county’s fast-growing economy.

    UL said in a statement that the laboratory, the company’s first wire and cable certification facility in Southeast Asia, had been accredited by the National Accreditation Committee as a testing laboratory and by the Product Certification Agency (LSPro) for the certification of Indonesian National Standards (SNI).

    The statement said that UL Indonesia had signed an agreement with the Industry Ministry’s Center for Material and Technical Products (B4T) on the expansion of the SNI certification scope by UL.

    UL Indonesia is allowed to provide testing services in line with SNI certification.

    Miller said that UL standard certification required ongoing surveillance and comprehensive monitoring of products starting from their designing until their selling.

    Meanwhile, vice president and managing director for UL ASEAN Region Anthony Tan said that UL operated three laboratories in Southeast Asia.

    The company had two laboratories in the consumer technology and transaction security fields in Singapore and a textile and consumer goods laboratory in Vietnam, Tan said.

    Tan added that the company would open another laboratory in the heating and ventilation field in Thailand this year.

  • Jin Air ready to fly to lombok using Boeing 777

    Jin Air ready to fly to lombok using Boeing 777

    South Korean low-cost carrier Jin Air is ready to fly to Lombok in the Indonesian province of West Nusa Tenggara using a wide-bodied Boeing 777 plane to encourage the tourism industry there, an official said.

    “I have received an official (notification) from the chairman of Korean Air that its subsidiary, Jin Air, is ready to fly to Lombok using Boeing 777,” Chief of the Investment Coordinating Board (BKPM) Thomas Lembong noted following a meeting at the Coordinating Ministry for Maritime Affairs here on Monday.

    He stated that low-cost carriers are badly needed to boost the tourism industry in Indonesia.

    Although investment in the tourism sector is not large, it still plays a very strategic role in creating jobs and bringing in foreign exchange earnings from international tourists, he said.

    “This needs an extraordinary teamwork as many tourists depend on air connectivity. We need air connectivity, particularly through budget carriers, so that there will be low-cost flights from Korea, China, Japan, Australia, India, and so on,” he remarked.

    Besides low-cost carriers, the government must also prepare supporting infrastructures to boost the tourism industry, he pointed out.

    “Although the runways and terminals of airports are still good, we still need to upgrade them. We must check their electronic navigation system, so that planes can land and take off despite bad weather,” he stated.

  • Where is Indonesian e-commerce headed?

    Where is Indonesian e-commerce headed?

    With a population of over 250 million and rapidly growing internet adoption, the Indonesian archipelago could offer a booming market for online shopping — and current projections say it will reach $130 billion by 2020.

    “The great thing is that there are a lot of investments… There are choices for consumers that love innovative solutions that are coming out from Indonesia itself,” William Gondokusumo, the CEO of Campaign.com and director of Tororo.com told.

    Recently, the Indonesian government altered regulations to allow more foreign investment in the sector. Indonesia’s investment service agency only recently allowed 100-percent foreign ownership for investments above 100 billion Indonesian rupiah ($7.53 million) for the establishment of an e-commerce company in the country.

    However, even with “big boys” such as Alibaba and JD.com coming in — and Amazon soon following with a reported $600 million investment — Gondokusumo predicted that domestic e-commerce firms won’t be pushed out as they are “more community focused.”

    The slowing Indonesian retail growth numbers of February, and indications that price pressure will continue over the next few months do not affect Gondokusumo’s bullish view on the retail and e-commerce in the country.

    “The way we see it,” he said. “All retail and media companies will eventually become their own social network.”

    On the contrary, Ken Dean Lawadinata, former CEO and chairman of Kaskus Networks, who invested alongside Gondokusumo in Tororo, held a less optimistic attitude.

    “At the moment, I have a more bearish attitude towards the IT industry, where I believe most investors and owners are pushing their company to a quick sell or short term mentality. This is not sustainable and bad for the industry itself,” he told in an email.

  • Indonesia Promotes Tourism in Japanese Festival

    Indonesia Promotes Tourism in Japanese Festival

    The Indonesian government participated in the “Singen-ko Festival 2017” held in the Yamanshi Prefecture, Japan, to promote the tourism sector and investments in Indonesia.

    Indonesia was represented by state-owned airline PT Garuda Indonesia, assigned to strengthen the Indonesia-Japan diplomatic relationship.

    “The Garuda Indonesia team is led by Garuda Indonesia Commissioner Jusman Syafeii Djamal, accompanied by House of Representatives Commission X member Niko Siahaan, and a number of local celebrities, such as Donna Agnesia, Okky Lukman, Indra Bekti, and Vincent,” Indonesia’s special envoy for investment affairs Rachmat Gobel said on Monday, April 10, 2017.

    According to Gobel, Indonesia’s involvement in such cultural festival is a strategic way to strengthen ties between Indonesia and Japan. In addition, Garuda has served Japanese wine products from Yamanase on its flights. Therefore, Gobel said Indonesia must seize the opportunity to attract more Japanese investors.

    Data from the Investment Coordinating Agency revealed that Japan is the second largest investor with a total investment value of US$5.4 billion after Singapore in 2016. Japan has made investments in almost all sectors, such as manufacturing, infrastructure and automotive.

    In addition, Japan recorded a surplus of USD 25 billion in current trade balance in February 2017, increasing from USD 588.6 million in January. Official data from the Japanese government showed that the surplus increased by 18.2 percent when compared to last year. Bloomberg forecasted that the current account surplus reached USD 22.5 billion.

    Japan has maintained its trade balance surplus for years, thanks to positive trade balance and strong revenues from overseas investments.

  • Japanese-Bruneian fund seizes investment opportunities in Indonesia

    Japanese-Bruneian fund seizes investment opportunities in Indonesia

    SBI Islamic Fund (Brunei) Limited, a joint venture between Brunei Darussalam’s Ministry of Finance and Japan’s Strategic Business Innovator (SBI) Holdings, is looking for opportunities to invest in Indonesia.

    SBI Islamic Fund (Brunei) Limited CEO Amran Mohammad said the fund would build fish processing factories in Maumere, East Nusa Tenggara, and in Aceh. The facilities would be used to process tuna to be exported to Japan.

    “The one in Aceh will be much bigger than that in Maumere. We are sealing the agreement for [the project in] Aceh,” he told The Jakarta Post during the 3rd IDB Member Countries Sovereign Investment Forum in Nusa Dua on Tuesday.

    The investment for the development of the two facilities would come from its second sharia fund totaling US$60 million.

    Both Brunei’s Ministry of Finance and SBI Holdings contributed $25 million each to the fund, while the remaining $10 million comes from the Islamic Development Bank (IDB).

    SBI Islamic Fund (Brunei) Limited’s first sharia fund worth $75 million was created three years ago and invested in Indonesia’s logistics firm Pandu Logistics, among other investments.

    However, Brunei Ministry of Finance deputy permanent secretary for investment Khairuddin Abdul Hamid said the fund was still looking for another $40 million from private investors.

    “We have already talked with some prominent parties during this forum and are still waiting for the reply,” he said.

  • Pertamina to acquire more oil and gas blocks abroad

    Pertamina to acquire more oil and gas blocks abroad

    State-owned oil and gas company PT Pertamina is seeking to acquire more oil and gas blocks in the country and abroad to meet its production target set by the government.

    “Operations abroad are expected to contribute 33 percent to the companys target of production of 1.9 million barrel oil equivalent per day in 2025,” its Upstream Director Syamsu Alam said in a media gathering here on Monday.

    The company would also be as aggressive in acquiring oil and gas blocks in the country, Syamsu said.

    Syamsu said currently Pertamina already has oil and gas blocks in operation in 12 countries such as in Algeria, Iraq and Malaysia, the first to operate , followed by ones in Nigeria, Tanzania and Gabon.

    Pertamina is preparing development of eight termination blocks in 2018 already handed over by the government to Pertamina including one in Sanga Sanga, East Kalimantan and OSES.

    Domestic assets are also optimized, Syamsu said citing the project of PHE WMO Integration, drilling of Parang Nunukan, Randugunting, enhanced oil recovery (EOR) of old wells.

    Indonesia is currently the 16th largest economy in the world with gross domestic product (GDP) at US$941 billion . In 2050, it is expected to break into the ranks of four largest after China, the United States, and India with GDP predicted at US$15.432 billion.

    Indonesia, therefore, would need support of large supply of energy , Syamsu said.

    In 2015 the countrys energy output reached 354 million tons equivalent oil including 271 million tons of coal and 113 million tons of oil, gas and renewable energy.

    While consumption of oil and gas is still high, production is decreasing with the shrinking known oil and gas reserves .

    Although Indonesia still has 60 oil and gas basins , the countrys oil reserves are ranked only the 26th in the world at 4 billion barrels. Similarly the countrys gas reserves , Indonesia is the 14th largest in the world with reserves of 100 TCF.

    The policy of Pertamina to acquire more oil blocks abroad to increase its reserves will contribute to guaranteeing energy supply in the country .

  • Grab Indonesia buys e-commerce startup Kudo

    Grab Indonesia buys e-commerce startup Kudo

    Ride-hailing firm Grab Indonesia has acquired e-commerce startup Kudo for an undisclosed amount, striking its first deal since pledging to invest US$700 million in its largest market.

    Kudo helps consumers without bank accounts to shop online by connecting them with online merchants and other service providers across 500 cities and towns.

    Based in Singapore, Grab says it plans to accelerate the expansion of Kudo’s network while bringing more riders and drivers on to its own platform. The two companies also plan to explore new financial products such as consumer loans and insurance.

    Former payment-processing company Euronet Worldwide executive Jason Thompson has been hired by Grab to head GrabPay. This digital wallet for riders was introduced last year.

    Grab’s Indonesian investment promise entails building its digital payments network over the next four years in a bid to win over the 260 million people in its largest market. The company’s car- and motorcycle-hailing businesses grew more than 600 per cent in Indonesia last year.

    Valued at more than US$3 billion, Grab intends to set aside as much as US$100 million to bankroll early-stage domestic startups in mobile and financial services. It has started establishing research centres in Bangalore, Ho Chi Minh City and Jakarta to complement engineering offices in Beijing, Seattle and Singapore.

  • Hooters Southeast Asia opens two more outlets

    Hooters Southeast Asia opens two more outlets

    Hooters has opened two outlets in Southeast Asia, Hooters of Singapore – Fusionopolis and Hooters of Jakarta.

    Both locations are run by international franchisee Destination Group of Singapore, a Hooters 2015 Developer of the Year.

    Hooters of Singapore – Fusionopolis is in the One-North Business Park in Buona Vista. The 240 sqm restaurant accommodates 103 guests and has more than 20 large-screen televisions. Fusionopolis is an integrated work-life-play-learn development comprising retail outlets, a fitness club, R&D businesses and apartments.

    Hooters restaurant

    Hooters of Jakarta is in the Kemang Square shopping area, known for its upscale shopping centres, residences and nightlife. The 228 sqm Hooters restaurant seats 105 guests and has more than 16 large-screen televisions.

    “We are continuing our steady progression of opening locations across Southeast Asia,” says Destination Group CEO Gary Murray. The company has a 35-location Southeast Asia development agreement with Hooters of America, with plans to open more outlets soon in Phnom Penh, Koh Samui in Thailand, Taipei and Manila (multiple locations).

    While guests in SouthEast Asia are offered the Hooters standards of burgers, wings, appetisers and salads, they can expect menu additions that suit local tastebuds such as sauces, Indonesian sambal and Singaporean chili crab.

    Hooters of America chief development officer Mark Whittle says more sites are being sought for the group’s restaurants in Bali, Bangkok, Cebu, Davao, Ho Chi Minh City, Hong Kong, Jakarta, Kowloon, Krabi, Kuala Lumpur, Macau, Manila, Siem Reap, Singapore, Taipei and Yangon.