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    • SingCham is the premier business chamber for Singaporean interests in Indonesia. Founded in 2006, SingCham aims to promote the business interests of individuals or companies operating in Singapore and/or Indonesia. SingCham provides networking activities, events, and useful information for its members, and acts as the liaison between the Singaporean business community and the Singapore and Indonesian governments. With a focus on fostering better networking and feedback among members, SingCham is committed to providing valuable resources and insights to help members connect, learn, and grow their businesses in Indonesia. Join SingCham today and become part of a thriving business community that benefits from exclusive resources, networking opportunities, and business insights.

    29Nov, 2018
    Go-Jek revs into Singapore market with launch of beta app

    Ride-hailing company Go-Jek launched the beta version of its app in Singapore on Thursday (Nov 29), kicking off the roll-out of its services across the island.

    During this beta phase, Go-Jek said access to the app will be granted in batches to balance ride demand and service capabilities.

    At the initial stage, the app will be made available only in limited areas in Singapore. It can be downloaded from iOS and Android app stores in Singapore from Thursday.

    Read more: Channel News Asia

    6Sep, 2018
    Facebook to build first Asian data centre in Singapore, investing S$1.4 billion

    Social media giant Facebook on Thursday (Sep 6) announced it will pour in more than S$1.4 billion to construct its first data centre in Asia in Singapore.

    The new facility, located at Tanjong Kling (formerly known as Data Centre Park) in the west of Singapore, will span 170,000 sq m and will “support hundreds of jobs”, the company said in its press release, adding it will form part of its growing presence in Singapore and across the region.

    Mr Thomas Furlong, vice president for Infrastructure Data Centers at Facebook, told reporters at the launch event that the new project will create “thousands of construction jobs”, while the facility will require “hundreds of operators” ranging from network maintenance to logistics staff. He added that given it is a long-term project, the company is still working out its staffing needs

    (read more: Channel News Asia)

    13Aug, 2018
    Energy investment in Indonesia less than half of target

    In the first half of this year, Indonesia booked US$9.48 billion in investment in the energy and mineral resources sector, only 25 percent of the full-year target of $37.2 billion.

    The oil and gas sector contributed the most to the total investment at $5.11 billion, followed by electricity at $2.83 billion.

    Meanwhile, the mining and renewable energy sectors recorded a respective $790 million and $750 million in the first half.

    Responding to the results, the Energy and Mineral Resources Ministry said in a presentation made available to The Jakarta Post that global energy prices had become one of the main challenges in the past three years.

    “The focus ahead is to continue with efforts that simplify regulations, strengthen investment facilities and speed up the process of making strategic decisions,” the ministry said in the presentation.

    Energy and Mineral Resources Ministry spokesman Agung Pribadi told the press last Friday that investment in oil and gas would jump significantly in the second half, as was typical.

    (source: The Jakarta Post)

    1Aug, 2018
    Malaysia’s sovereign wealth fund Khazanah Nasional invested about US$19.7 million in a failed lingerie business

    Malaysia’s sovereign wealth fund Khazanah Nasional invested about RM80 million (US$19.7 million) in a failed lingerie business, local media reported on Wednesday (Aug 1).

    This was revealed by the country’s economic affairs minister Mohamed Azmin Ali during his ministerial reply on the motion of thanks of the royal address in Parliament, The Star Online reported.

    Responding to a question by former prime minister Najib Razak on how Khazanah had deviated from its original objectives, Azmin said that the fund had invested in the business which eventually failed, according to the report.

    “Khazanah had invested in the online business, involving bras and lingerie,” the report quoted him as saying.

    “The business eventually failed and the losses had to be written off.”

    The minister added that this sort of investment was an example of the direction taken by the fund that had strayed from its focus, the New Straits Times reported.

    (Read more: Channel News Asia)

    27Jul, 2018
    Government calls on export heavyweights to help bolster rupiah

    The government has asked major exporters to park their export revenue in Indonesia and convert it into rupiah to help bolster the currency’s exchange rate.

    President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo made the call during his meeting with 40 top Indonesian exporters on Thursday at Bogor Palace in West Java. Also present at the meeting were Indonesia’s richest man, Robert Budi Hartono, Adaro Energy president director Garibaldi “Boy” Thohir and GarudaFood Group chairman Sudhamek Agoeng Waspodo Soenjoto.

    Finance Minister Sri Mulyani Indrawati said the meeting was held to gather input from the businessmen on managing the prolonged global uncertainty. The government also asked how to channel export revenue to Indonesia.

    “We conveyed to them what we, the government, could do to [persuade] the businessmen to bring their export revenue [back] to Indonesia,” she said after the meeting.

    Indonesian Employers Association (Apindo) chairman Hariyadi Sukamdani said only 85 percent of export revenue returned to Indonesia, while the remaining 15 percent was parked overseas.

    (Read more: The Jakarta Post)

    11Jul, 2018
    Indonesia to create economic growth centers beyond Java

    National Development Planning Minister Bambang Brodjonegoro has said that the government is committed to creating new centers of economic growth outside Java in its effort to reducing economic disparities between Java and other regions.

    Bambang, who is also head of the National Development Planning Agency (Bappenas), pointed out that 60 percent of the country’s economy was based in Java, 20 percent in Sumatra and the remaining 20 percent in other regions.

    “Therefore, we have to create new centers of growth outside Java,” the minister said in Jakarta on Tuesday, as quoted by kontan.co.id. He made the statement at a press conference on the Indonesian Development Forum (IDF), which Australian Ambassador to Indonesia Gary Quinlan also attended.

    (Read More: The Jakarta Post)

    10Jul, 2018
    Singapore Investment Giant Turns Wary, Citing Global Risks

    Temasek Holdings Pte., the Singaporean state firm that poured $95 billion into everything from startups to asset managers in the past five fiscal years, is turning more cautious as threats to the global economic expansion mount.

    The investor expects global growth to moderate and sees rising risks in the market, Temasek said in a statement accompanying its annual review on Tuesday. “We may recalibrate and slow our investment pace over the next nine to 18 months,” Alpin Mehta, managing director of investment, said in the statement.

    (Read More: The Strait Times)
    4Jul, 2018
    Jokowi Opens Indonesia’s First Wind Power Plant, It’s in Sulawesi

    As President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo inaugurated Indonesia’s first wind power plant in Sidenreng Rappang, South Sulawesi, on Monday (02/07), the government is getting closer to its ambitious target of obtaining more than a fifth of the country’s energy from renewable sources.

    The plant, also known as PLTB Sidrap, consists of 30 wind turbines which can produce up to 75 megawatts and electrify 80,000 households. The turbines in 40 percent consist of locally produced components.

    “This puts Indonesia among the few Asian countries that posses wind power plants, like Japan, China and Korea,” Jokowi said in a statement.

    Wind turbine in Sidrap. Photo courtesy: Yusran Uccang – Antara

    Sidrap started its development in 2015 with $150 million borne by a consortium comprising of UPC Renewables Asia I, UPC Renewables Asia III, Sunedison and Binatek Energi Terbarukan.

    A similar project in Bantul, Yogyakarta, also developed  by UPC Renewables, was shelved in 2017 due to land clearance problems.

    Jokowi seeks to connect 99 percent of Indonesians to the country’s grid by 2019, when his first presidential term ends. Currently, the electrification rate is 96 percent.

    Indonesia aims to have 23 percent of its total power coming from renewable resources by 2025, also to fulfill its climate change mitigation commitment, in accordance with the Paris Agreement.

    Today, only 14 percent of the country’s energy is clean. More than half of it still comes from coal-powered plants.

    (Source: Jakarta Globe)