China to provide $1 billion credit facility for RI energy projects
Tuesday, December 23 2008 - 01:45 AM WIB
The memorandum of understanding (MoU) on the credit facilities was signed in Jakarta on Monday with the presence of Chinese Deputy Prime Minister Li Keqiang who is currently visiting the country, and Vice President Jusuf Kalla.
Speaking to the press following the signing of the MoU, Kalla said the so-called Buyers Credit Facility which would be provided through China?s Export and Import Bank would be used to import China?s equipment or other products needed for the development of energy or infrastructure projects in Indonesia.
?Indonesian delegation which will be led by Coordinating Minister for the Economy (Sri Mulyani Indrawati) will visit China in January, next year to follow up the credit facility agreement,? Kalla said.
During a meeting with the Chinese delegation led by Li, the Indonesian government also asked the Chinese government to provide more funds for the construction of power plants currently being built under the government?s fast track program to provide additional power supply of 10,000 megawatt. Most of the power plants are built by Chinese contractors.
Energy and Mineral Resources Purnomo Yusgiantoro said the Chinese contractors were required to provide at least 80 percent of the funds needed for the construction of the power plants they built.
With such a scenario, the Chinese contractors had to provide at least US$3 billion to finance the power projects they won, he said. ?However, the realization reached only $1 billion. That?s why in the meeting, we also asked the Chinese the government to increase the funding to $3 billion,? he added. (bernard)