17Dec, 2018
Photo: Doni Setiawan – The Jakarta Post
Indonesia plans to make 30 percent biodiesel blend mandatory, studies B100
While the government expanded the mandatory use of a 20 percent biodiesel blend ( B20 ) in September, it plans to further boost domestic biodiesel consumption to absorb more crude palm oil (CPO) amid fluctuation in the global market price of the commodity.
Apart from improving the distribution of the B20 blend across to the country, the government is also carrying out research to increase the portion of biodiesel in the fuels rom 20 percent to 30 percent ( B30 ) or even to 100 percent ( B100 ).
State-owned oil and gas holding company Pertamina supply chain operations manager Gema Iriandus Pahalawan further explained that three more biodiesel refineries would be developed, likely in Plaju in South Sumatra, Dumai in Riau and Balikpapan in East Kalimantan, to produce more biodiesel.
Gema said the production of B30 biodiesel was expected to be implemented, while the government was still improving the B20 distribution, which had reached 97 percent in November and was planned to be completed in December.
Read more:
17Dec, 2018
‘Bizarre’ zebra crossing in GBK forces pedestrians to jaywalk
A video poking fun at a “bizarre” zebra crossing near Gate 10 of the Gelora Bung Karno (GBK) sports complex, Central Jakarta, went viral recently.
The video shows a woman in sportswear crossing the road, but she has to stop halfway because a road divider with plants around 40 centimeters tall cuts through the middle of the zebra crossing.
The woman then pretends to prepare to jump over the divider, while the man behind the camera says jokingly, “The design [of the zebra crossing] requires pedestrians to be good at sports as they have to jump to cross the road.” Both of them eventually walk around the divider before using the zebra crossing again.
The video was uploaded on Gusti Fauzi M Gafli’s Facebook account on Dec. 10.
The caption of the video says, “Anyone that can help, please inform whoever [is] responsible for GBK. Please help make our GBK a world-class sports facility.”
Read more: The Jakarta Post
19Nov, 2018
Photo by Kyle Ryan on Unsplash
54 sectors now fully open to foreign capital, The Indonesian govt relaxes regulations to attract investors
The Indonesian government is going on a streak to weather down external shocks affecting the country’s economic performance.
After Bank Indonesia raised its seven-day repo rate by another 25 basis points to six percent on Thursday, the government announced on Friday that it had launched the 16th economic package aimed at relaxing regulations pertaining to investment.
The package comprises three main points, namely the expansion of the tax holiday, the adjustment to the negative investment list (DNI) and the provision of tax incentives for the mandatory saving of export earnings in Indonesian bank accounts.
Coordinating Economic Minister Darmin Nasution argued that the economic package should not be seen as “pro-foreigner” and should instead be perceived as a means to enhance productivity.
The government noted Rp 14.4 trillion (US$985.23 million) worth of foreign capital entering Indonesia through government debt papers between January and November.
Darmin said it was a sign of confidence from foreign investors toward Indonesia despite the external situation going against the country, such as monetary tightening in the United States, which prompted investors to pull their money out of emerging markets and move it to the US.
Below are the economic stimulus measures:
New tax holiday
The new tax holiday in the 16th economic package expands the categories, duration and amount it applies to. A revision to Finance Ministerial Regulation (PMK) No. 35/2018 on the tax holiday will be issued, along with a new PMK to regulate a special tax holiday for smaller investments in special economic zones (SEZs).
The ministry’s undersecretary for macroeconomics and finance, Iskandar Simorangkir, said President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo had instructed his office and the Finance Ministry to issue the two regulations by next week.
Eighteen sectors were offered various tax holiday incentives, with the new sectors being the processing industry based on agriculture, plantations or forestry and the digital economy.
With the new regulation, investments worth between Rp 100 billion and Rp 500 billion can now benefit from a 50 percent income tax reduction for five years.
Investments worth between Rp 20 billion and Rp 100 billion in SEZs are also eligible for the same incentive, whereas investments over Rp 100 billion in SEZs can be fully exempted from income tax for between five and 20 years.
54 sectors now fully open to foreign capital
The new economic package revises the DNI by excluding 87 business sectors, thereby allowing them to benefit from partial or full investment from foreign investors.
Out of the 87 sectors, 54 are now fully open to foreign capital, such as offshore oil and gas drilling, clove and white cigarette production, certain categories of medical equipment production, dairy farming and fabric printing.
investment in the past few years, with the latest Coordinating Investment Board (BKPM) data showing a 1.4 percent quarterly decline of investment growth in the third quarter, following a 4.9 percent decline in the second quarter.
With the decline, the BKPM has revised down this year’s investment target to Rp 730 trillion from Rp 765 trillion.
The ministry’s special staffer, Edy Putra Irawady, reassured that the revision of the DNI would not suppress opportunities for domestic investors, particularly those from small and medium enterprises (SMEs).
He also emphasized that the removal of the sectors from the DNI was based on the discretion of each ministry responsible for them, hence it would be up to each ministry to explain the benefits of allowing foreign investment in the sectors.
Similar to the new tax holiday, Jokowi mandated the administration to issue a new regulation pertaining to the DNI adjustment approximately a week after the economic package was launched.
Incentives for export earnings (DHE)
The third incentive prepared in the 16th economic package is to provide final income tax cuts for exporters who deposit their earnings (DHE) in designated bank accounts in order to provide liquidity to the domestic financial system.
The regulation stipulates that export earnings from mining, plantation, forestry and fishery sectors be deposited with domestic lenders who are authorized to conduct foreign exchange transactions or in branches of foreign lenders in Indonesia.
The ministry’s special staffer on economic and political relations, law and security, Elen Setiadi, said a zero percent final income tax cut would be provided to exporters who deposit at least 90 percent of their earnings for more than six months, both in the form of US dollars or rupiah.
Various tax rates will also be applied to earnings deposited for less than six months, such as a 7.5 percent final income tax for US dollars and 5 percent final income tax for rupiah earnings deposited for three months.
The designated accounts will also be able to serve as the exporters’ escrow account, meaning that they will be able to withdraw money from their accounts to pay routine bills or dividends and keep the rest of the funds under Bank Indonesia’s supervision.
The incentives and sanctions will be regulated through a PMK and BI regulation, which will be established 30 days at the latest after the economic package was launched, and will be implemented by Jan. 1 next year.
—-
This article has published at The Jakarta Post.com titled “Indonesia’s latest economic stimulus package: What you need to know”
http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2018/11/17/indonesias-latest-economic-stimulus-package-what-you-need-to-know.html
27Sep, 2018
Jakarta Bay reclamation. Photo: Antara / Aditya Pradana Putra
Jakarta Governor Anies Baswedan revokes reclamation project permits
Jakarta Governor Anies Baswedan has voided principle permits to stop work on 13 man-made islands in the controversial Jakarta Bay land reclamation project.
Anies said that the decision on Wednesday was made after hearing a recommendation from the Northern Coast Management Coordinating Agency (BKP-Pantura).
“Based on the recommendation, we can assure you that we will stop the development of the 13 reclaimed islands,” Anies told reporters at City Hall, as reported on the administration’s website.
The governor was referring to islets A, B and E, which are being developed by PT Kapuk Naga Indah; islets I, J and K, developed by PT. Pembangunan Jaya Ancol; islet M, developed by PT. Manggal Krida Yudha; islets O and F, developed by PT Jakarta Propertindo; islets P and Q, developed by KEK Marunda Jakarta; islet H, developed by PT Taman Harapan Indah; and islet I, developed by PT Jaladri Kartika Pakci.
Anies added that the existing islets would be used for the benefit of the public, without specifying what that meant.
Anies claimed the developers, which have already obtained principle permits, had failed to follow the correct procedures, including with regard to submitting the design and Environmental Impact Analysis (Amdal) reports.
Source: The Jakarta Post
