"This smelter construction is our effort to become a developed industrial country with our natural resources processing with no export in raw materials," he informed at the inauguration of PT Freeport Indonesia's smelter on Monday.
According to him, the smelter's construction is part of the downstream program initiated by the government to provide added value to state income.
"This is the implementation of our downstreaming idea," he added.
The head of state said that the downstreaming program will be the foundation of Indonesia's new economy, and cut gross domestic product (GDP) reliance on domestic consumption.
"Our GDP growth is still dominated by domestic consumption. We want to shift it to production-based. Let it be productivity from state-owned companies or private companies," he expounded.
Related news: Gresik smelter to add Rp80 trillion to state coffers: President
Therefore, the smelter factory in Gresik is part of the supporting program for the downstreaming of the mineral resource industry in Indonesia, he added.
With a special mining business permit, the second smelter owned by PT Freeport Indonesia will allow mineral resources to be fully managed from upstream to downstream domestically.
The smelter is a copper refining facility with the largest single-line design in the world. It is equipped with main facilities such as a copper smelting and refining plant with a precious metal refining unit and various supporting facilities.
The supporting facilities include a port, concentrate warehouse, slag treatment, steam dryer, oxygen plant, sulfuric acid processing, desalination, and wastewater and surface water treatment installations.
The President said that investment in the development of the smelter would help boost state revenue by up to Rp80 trillion (US$5 billion).
Based on the initial calculation, the state revenue would be obtained from several sources, including dividends, royalties, local taxes, and export taxes, he added.
Related news: President Jokowi officiates Freeport smelter in Gresik, East Java
Translator: Benardy Ferdiansyah, Resinta Sulistiyandari
Editor: Yuni Arisandy Sinaga
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