Jakarta. The Indonesian government will assume responsibility for managing the $7.3 billion debt of the Jakarta-Bandung high-speed railway, transferring oversight from sovereign wealth fund Danantara Indonesia to the Finance Ministry, Finance Minister Purbaya Yudhi Sadewa said on Wednesday.
The decision follows concerns within Danantara over the financial burden associated with the flagship railway project, which was launched under the previous administration.
Purbaya said the policy has already been approved and is awaiting completion of administrative procedures.
“The decision has been made. We are now completing the administrative process,” he told reporters at the Presidential Palace.
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Once the process is finalized, responsibility for managing the railway project’s debt will be transferred to the Finance Ministry in accordance with instructions from President Prabowo Subianto, he said.
Purbaya added that the government has already prepared a framework for restructuring and repaying the debt, stressing that the plan would not necessarily require funding from the state budget.
“The project is currently under Danantara, but it will be transferred to me because the president has instructed us to resolve the issue, and it does not necessarily have to use state budget funds,” he said, without providing further details.
“Leave it to me. I’ll take care of it,” he added.
Earlier, Danantara Chief Operating Officer Dony Oskaria said negotiations on the project’s debt restructuring had reached a final agreement following extensive discussions with the Finance Ministry.
Danantara has repeatedly raised objections to the responsibility of managing such a large debt load.
The Whoosh high-speed railway is a joint venture between Indonesian and Chinese partners. An Indonesian state-owned consortium holds a 60% stake, while a consortium of five Chinese companies owns the remaining 40%. State railway operator PT Kereta Api Indonesia (KAI) is the largest shareholder with a 58.53% interest.
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