VOI - Voice of Indonesia | RRI - Radio Republik Indonesia

Public Works and Public Housing (PUPR) Minister Basuki Hadimuljono discussed potential cooperation in toll road and housing development with representatives of Turkish companies at the ministry’s headquarters in Jakarta on Monday.

He was accompanied by the Indonesian Ambassador to Turkey, Lalu Muhammad Iqbal.

"We are looking forward to the participation of Turkish enterprises in development programs in Indonesia,” Hadimuljono remarked in a written statement released the same day.

He said he expected the meeting to strengthen the two countries’ bilateral cooperation and help Indonesia to realize its infrastructure development projects.

There is a lot of investment potential between Indonesia and Turkey, he added.

Turkish construction companies are some of the best global contractors and have successfully executed 10,725 projects in 128 countries worth US$424.5 billion, he noted.

Most of the projects have involved the construction of housing, roads, bridges, and tunnels in Europe, Asia, and the Middle East, he added.

The minister then urged Turkish corporations to invest in infrastructure sectors in Indonesia through both Public-Private Partnership (KPBU) as well as Engineering, Procurement, and Construction (EPC) schemes.

The meeting was a follow-up to a previous meeting held in early November 2021 at the office of the Turkish Trade Ministry and a direct visit to Ankara-Nide Toll Road in Ankara city, Turkey, he informed.

"I lauded Turkey for its success in developing Ankara city as its capital city. When I visited the country, I noted the similarities in geography, topography, and environment of Ankara city and our new capital city (IKN) in East Kalimantan province,” Hadimuljono added.

Hence, he said he believed that sustainable cooperation between the two countries must be maintained so that Indonesia can achieve the same success in developing its new IKN.

At a business forum with State-Owned Enterprises (BUMN), also held the same day, he suggested further discussions with Turkish companies on prospective infrastructure projects and investment in the construction of toll roads and housing in Indonesia.

He proposed a joint direct visit to a toll road project in Pekanbaru city, Riau province, Jambi-Rengat and Rengat-Pekanbaru (Pekanbaru - Siak) sections of the Trans Sumatra toll road spanning 282.7 kilometers (km), sections III and IV of IKN Access Toll Road projects stretching over 33.76 km, as well as a KPBU schemed housing project in Zone 1A of IKN for 11,268 residential units (to be built in 2021 to 2024).

Indonesian Ambassador Iqbal informed that currently, there are two Turkish corporations that are interested in Indonesian development projects.

The first company focuses on toll road construction, while the second is the world’s second-largest corporation making prefabricated housing, he said.

"The Turkish companies have discussed with the director general of infrastructure financing. They will also visit toll roads in Sumatra Island to help in restructuring and inviting investors," the ambassador added. (antaranews)