The Ministry of Industry focuses on preparing a number of Integrated Industrial Estates (KIT) which will be equipped with supporting infrastructure for new business activities. In the National Medium-Term Development Plan 2020-2024, the government proposes the construction of 27 new industrial zones.

Director General of Resilience, Regionalism and International Industrial Access, Ministry of Industry Dody Widodo said in Jakarta on Tuesday (July7) that currently there are around 12,500 hectares of land area ready to be offered to investors. Dody Widodo said, the Ministry of Industry is mapping out industrial estates managed by State-Owned Enterprises to be ready to accommodate relocation from China.

Industrial estates along the north coast of Java are considered to have interesting values to be offered to investors because they are superior in terms of export-import loading and unloading speed. In general, relocation can be directed to all areas in Central Java and East Java.

One of areas that is being accelerated of its development is the Batang Integrated Industrial Estate (KIT) in Central Java province, which has more than 4 thousand hectares land area. This area is intensively offered to investors who plan to relocate factories from China and a number of countries in Southeast Asia. Investment that will enter the Batang Integrated Industrial Zone in the first phase is estimated at 850 million US$ and has the potential to absorb 30 thousand workers. The development is prioritized to compete with industrial estates in countries around Southeast Asia such as Vietnam and Malaysia.

In addition to the Batang Integrated Industrial Estate, five other industrial estates developments have been proposed to be included in the list of National Strategic Projects for the 2020-2024 period. The five projects are the Brebes Industrial Estate in Central Java, the Takalar Industrial Estate in South Sulawesi, the Tanjung Enim Industrial Estate in South Sumatra, and the two potential industrial areas in North Maluku, namely Weda Bay and Obi Island.

Chairman of the Indonesian Industrial Estate Association (HKI) Sanny Iskandar acknowledged that industrial center in Java more attracted by investors than other regions because the infrastructures are better prepared. Of the total 96 industrial estates that are registered by Indonesian Industrial Estate Association, mostly are in Java. He explained, many locations are in West Java, reaching 27 areas. But nationally, there are 70 area managers within Industrial Estate Association who are ready to accommodate industrial relocation.