There are seven countries exploring possibilities to invest in railway such as China, Russia, Japan, and South Korea, in addition to Malaysia, Singapore and France, Assistant II of Economic and Development of South Sumatra Provincial Administration Ruslan Bahri said here Monday.
"The administration has approached some investors to see the seriousness of countries that declared their interest in the project," Bahri said.
The construction of the railway will support the logistic transportation ability following the plan of Special Economic Zone in 2018, the assistant said.
The railway will mainly function as logistic transportation to carry coal and the main commodities of South Sumatra including palm oil fruit and crude rubber from Muara Enim, Bahri added.
The provincial administration will develop processing industries in the Special Economic Zone sourced from local raw materials, he added.
Additionally, the administration is focusing on infrastructure sector construction as the main investment opportunity as the province will host the 18th Asian Games, Deputy Governor of South Sumatra Province Ishak Mekki said.
Several projects in South Sumatra Province that will be implemented in 2016, such as the Light Rapid Transit transportation worth at Rp7.2 trillion, and double track railway started from Lubuk Linggau to Tanjung Api-Api Port at Rp11.1 trillion.
The administration is still searching for the investor who interested to build the Rp11.1 trillion railway project plan, Mekki said.
The administration will also construct the 12 thousand-hectare Special Economic Zone project, worth Rp54.2 trillion, and build the Musi bridge IV and VI as well as a toll road for Sumatra region.
South Sumatra is on its way to developing the region to increase economic activity through infrastructure development, he said. (*)
Editor: Heru Purwanto
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