Djarwo Surjanto, President Director, Pelindo III (PERSERO): Interview

Interview: Djarwo Surjanto

How will the creation of the Teluk Lamong terminal and the Java Integrated Industrial and Port Estate (JIIPE) affect the economy of East Java?

DJARWO SURJANTO: The development of the Teluk Lamong terminal will go a long way toward improving Surabaya’s overall port capacity. Other than the boost in capacity, Teluk Lamong represents the future standard for the nation’s ports due to the fact that it is an entirely green terminal. We agreed with Organda, the national land transportation association, that Teluk Lamong will be serviced only by trucks running on natural gas rather than gasoline. We must initially accommodate trucks using other fuel types, but we are hoping that within six months all of our customers and partners will acclimatise to this new standard. Furthermore, by asking truckers to use gas, we are to some extent indirectly helping the government to decrease the gasoline subsidy, if only by a small amount at first. We are planning on launching this green terminal concept with Teluk Lamong, then moving towards the conversion of other existing conventional terminals. This way, within five years, we hope that all operations in the Tanjung Perak port in Surabaya will be gas-based.

The JIIPE, which we are developing in partnership with AKR Corporindo, will serve a significant role in the future growth of Surabaya. An industrial park of this scale will have a number of immediate economic impacts. In addition to the job creation that will occur as firms establish operations in Surabaya, JIIPE is also expected to stimulate additional exports from East Java and facilitate greater logistical efficiencies, by minimising the distance from the industrial park to the port.

How are port operators preparing for the increase in activity brought on by the growth of the economy and improvements in regional integration?

SURJANTO: Port operators are rapidly scaling up development activity in anticipation for this increase in activity. Although Teluk Lamong is not yet finished, we are already beginning development on other integrated terminals. When the ASEAN Economic Community becomes a reality, we have to be at least as efficient, and to offer the same level of services, as our neighbours including Malaysia, Thailand and the Philippines.

We are therefore pursuing many concurrent projects such as the development of Teluk Lamong and the Java Integrated Industrial and Port Estate; the construction of further ports in Central Java; and the creation of new projects that will help to prevent flooding at ports.

Investments are also taking place in order to enhance service quality. We can work in conjunction with our ASEAN neighbours and with nations around the world to facilitate these improvements. In areas like the development of our human capital, for example, we send personnel overseas to attain the highest levels of training and to use that experience to ensure the sustained development of local ports at global standards.

What role can partnerships with foreign firms play in the continued development of Surabaya’s ports?

SURJANTO: In terms of terminal operations, it is crucial for us to partner with foreign companies to enhance the quality of our services. In areas like dredging, the experts are all from the Netherlands, and we work in conjunction with them to develop these processes in Indonesia. The key thing when it comes to foreign partners is the development of long-standing partnerships.

We fully understand that the government has a limited budget with various priorities, and therefore the economic players themselves must take an active role in providing the demand for this level of growth.

Through our partnerships with companies like Van Oord, with whom we are working on deepening and widening access channels, we are providing an example to the community that this is the way forward for our continued growth. The industrial park will provide a basis for more companies to come to Surabaya that have the capacity to form these kinds of partnerships.

With this in place, I am confident that East Java can continue to attain high levels of growth in the years to come.