Skip to main content

Indonesia plans $490 billion infrastructure spend over the next five years

According to the government of Indonesia, US$490.7 billion (IDR 6,000 trillion) will be needed in the next five years for a series of major infrastructure projects across the country including roads, bridges, power plants, ports and airports. The government hopes that investment projects like these will boost its economic growth rate to 7% per annum versus 5% this year. This latest announcement follows on from an Indonesian government report last November, which unveiled plans to invest $35 billion in new
October 8, 2014 Read time: 2 mins
According to the government of Indonesia, US$490.7 billion (IDR 6,000 trillion) will be needed in the next five years for a series of major infrastructure projects across the country including roads, bridges, power plants, ports and airports. The government hopes that investment projects like these will boost its economic growth rate to 7% per annum versus 5% this year.

This latest announcement follows on from an 1065 Indonesian government report last November, which unveiled plans to invest $35 billion in new infrastructure projects in a bid to tackle one of the biggest deterrents to its growth – a weak national highway and transportation infrastructure in what is now one of Asia's biggest economies. “Of the 56 planned projects, 32 are meant to be partnerships between the private and public sector, which Indonesia calls 'PPP' ventures,” said Reuters.

"We want the PPP scheme to dominate the development projects," chief economic minister Hatta Rajasa said, adding that there would have to be incentives to attract private investors.

Indonesia has attracted high volumes of foreign investment in recent years, but the level has started to slow in the face of a weaker global economy and some severe infrastructure bottlenecks. Economists have long argued that the Indonesian government must first address problems such as poor quality roads and overloaded ports if it is to have any hope of competing for investment with other fast-growing Asian nations.

Among the projects (which will start between 2014 and 2017) are several new highways schemes, including toll roads in Sumatra, one of the world's largest islands. There are also plans for eight seaports, two airports, eight railways, five power plants and 11 water supply and waste treatment, of some will be done by PPPs. No new railway line has been built in Indonesia since the end of Dutch colonial rule nearly 70 years ago.

"These infrastructure projects are crucial to sustain Indonesia's long-term growth," said Andy Ferdinand, head of research at Batavia Prosperindo Sekuritas in Jakarta.

For more information on companies in this article

Related Content

  • ITF helping to plot the future of urban transport mobility
    December 2, 2013
    The 8th APEC Transport Ministers’ Meeting in Tokyo on 4-6 Septembersaw high-level discussions on how to enhance connectivity in the Asia-Pacific region through high-quality transport. As a guest, the International Transport Forum (ITF) was also heavily involved in the event, as Guy Woodford reports A transport Connectivity Map visualising Asia-Pacific’s ideal transport network in 2020, and a Quality Transport vision for the region encompassing convenience, safety, security, and sustainability, will b
  • UK contractors group CECA says infrastructure workload dips
    November 11, 2015
    Britain’s Civil Engineering Contractors Association has warned of declining infrastructure workloads despite indications that the UK is climbing slowly out of the global economic downturn. The slump in infrastructure workloads is a “surprise”, according to a statement by the CECA. The CECA survey of companies that build and maintain the UK’s vital transport and power networks also comes just as the government launched the National Infrastructure Commission to oversee more than €140 billion of spending o
  • Papua New Guinea mends its bridges
    February 28, 2022
    Under the latest tranche of the Sustainable Highlands Highway Investment Programme, 45 of the estimated 71 bridges will be completely replaced.
  • New Polish government of Jaroslaw Kaczynski rethinks road spend
    December 7, 2015
    Poland might double road spend after the new government criticised spending calculations up to 2025 put together by the previous administration. The Vice-Minister of Infrastructure said expenditure would need to nearly double to around €47 billion for the planned new dual carriageways and motorways. A report by daily economic and political newspaper Rzeczpospolita said the government is calling the estimate of €3.7 million to build a 1km of road “unrealistic”. The rethink comes after Poland's euros