Currently, the capacity of the national pulp industry is 12.13 million tons per year. This places Indonesia in the eighth place globally. Meanwhile, the paper industry, with an installed capacity of 18.26 million tons per year, places Indonesia in th
Jakarta (ANTARA) - Indonesia's pulp and paper industry showed some improvement to the point that its pulp industry was ranked eighth in the world while its paper industry stood sixth worldwide, the Industry Ministry stated.

"Currently, the capacity of the national pulp industry is 12.13 million tons per year. This places Indonesia in the eighth place globally. Meanwhile, the paper industry, with an installed capacity of 18.26 million tons per year, places Indonesia in the sixth ranking globally," Director General of Agro Industry at the Industry Ministry Putu Juli Ardika stated here on Friday.

He noted that currently, 111 national pulp and paper companies had employed over 161 thousand direct workers and 1.2 million indirect workers.

"In 2021, the export performance of the pulp and paper industry reached US$7.5 billion, or contributed 6.22 percent to non-oil and gas exports, which contributed 3.84 percent of the gross domestic product (GDP) of the non-oil and gas processing industry," he stated.

The pulp and paper industry still has prospects, as the demand is still quite high, he noted. However, it was necessary to increase product diversification that has high added value, such as processing and dissolving pulp into viscose rayon as a raw material for products of the textile industry.

"The paper industry is a sector with great potential because almost all types of paper can be produced domestically, including banknotes and valuable paper that have special specifications in meeting security aspects," Ardika added.

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He also stated that investment opportunities in the pulp and paper industry sector and its derivatives were quite good, one of which was PT Riau Andalan Pulp and Paper (RAPP). During a working visit to RAPP in Pangkalan Kerinci, Riau, on Wednesday, he commended the company's activities that had a profound impact on the welfare of the surrounding community and sustainable management.

"The increase in production capacity (RAPP) is expected to be able to increase employment, contribute to fulfilling domestic and export markets, and reduce dependence on imported products," he stated.


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President Director of PT RAPP Sihol Parulian Aritonang stated that during the period from 2021 to 2023, there was an additional investment of Rp33.4 trillion (US$2.1 billion), including for the construction of a green packaging (paperboard) factory, with production capacity of up to 1.2 million tons per year along with other supporting industries.

"PT RAPP is a producer of Bleach Hardwood Kraft (BHK) pulp and dissolving pulp that is integrated with the downstream industry, using 85 percent of energy from biomass, to support the factory's operational processes," he explained.


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Translator: Sella P G, Mecca Yumna
Editor: Fardah Assegaf
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