Finance Minister of Singapore Lawrence Wong (Source: MCI/VNA)

Jakarta – Indonesia and Singapore plan to build an international container port in Kendal industrial park - a joint venture between the two countries - in Central Java of Indonesia, Singapore's Finance Minister Lawrence Wong has said.

He made the suggestion during a visit to the park, as part of his four-day working trip to Indonesia.

Feasibility studies on potential sites for a port had been done by companies in Singapore and Indonesia, and a proposal has been made to the central government in Jakarta, Wong said at a joint press conference with Kendal Regent Dico Ganinduto.

The minister noted that with the growth of manufacturing activities in the province, companies would want to increase not only consumption within Indonesia but also exports to other countries.

Logistics and transportation costs are a factor in driving competitiveness, so they do see the need for a port, he said.

Meanwhile, Dico said the development of the port has been marked as a strategic national project, and discussions are underway in Jakarta to decide which company will be appointed as a local partner to Singapore to develop the port.

Director of the park Didik Purbadi said that the proposed port is expected to be finished by 2024. It will be capable of handling 400,000 twenty-foot equivalent units (TEUs) of containers initially, which will gradually rise to 1.5 million TEUs as demand grows.

Once completed, it will be the second international-standard port in Central Java, raising the profile of the province as a major industrial hub in the country, he added.

According to Dikik, major industrial regions like Jakarta, East Java have several sea ports, while Central Java has only one, that is, Port of Tanjung Emas in Semarang, about one hour from Kendal Industrial Park. Thus, the new port will make the province more competitive as the key to success is bringing production centres and distribution channels closer, he said.