Indonesian SOEs Eye Funding in Central and South Asia

Indonesian state-owned companies plan to investigate potential investments in Central and South Asia's non-traditional market during an upcoming forum. The 2024 Indonesia-South and Central Asia (INASCA) Business Forum will be hosted by the Indonesian government in Jakarta on Oct. 7. Numerous companies from both local and the mentioned two areas will come together for business discussions.

Abdul Kadir Jaelani, a director-general at the Foreign Affairs Ministry, stated that Indonesia has not fully utilized the mostly unexplored markets in Central and South Asia, which is why the forum is emphasizing on them.

Kadir stated that Indonesia had not established a goal for the amount of money they would earn from the yearly business event. Nevertheless, focus will be on securing investment deals.

“We are aware that Indonesia is not only an investment destination but also a capital-exporting country. South Asia and Central Asia hold a quite large potential and we can see our SOEs potentially playing a role in these regions,” Kadir told the press in Jakarta on Friday.

Kadir also mentioned that Pertamina, the state-owned oil and gas company, would participate as one of the SOE representatives. Pertamina has previous experience dealing with both of these regions. In 2022, Pertamina's gas subsidiary PGN in South Asia signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with Intraco. The agreement involves the construction of liquefied natural gas (LNG) and natural gas infrastructure in Bangladesh.