China, Indonesia sign high-speed rail line deal
China and Indonesia have signed an agreement to build a high-speed railway line between the capital Jakarta and the city of Bandung, state media reported.
The joint venture agreement was signed in Jakarta on Friday, the state-run news agency Xinhua reported.
China Railway International and a consortium of Indonesian state companies will build the rail line and plan to compete for other projects in the region, Sahala Lumban Gaol, the chairman of the joint venture, said.
The project will be mostly funded by the China Development Bank and will not use the Indonesian government budget or have a state guarantee, he said.
Indonesia’s first high-speed train project comes after the government decided to scrap plans for a state-funded bullet train to Bandung after bidding by both China and Japan, leaving only China interested in a business-to-business deal.
President Joko Widodo is planning to revive flagging growth in Southeast Asia’s largest economy through infrastructure building.
“We hope this new company will compete outside Indonesia for high-speed railway projects,” said Gaol.
The project is expected to take three years with trains to run at 250 km/h.
China will hold 40 per cent of the venture and it will be the first overseas high-speed railway using Chinese technology, according to Xie Feng, China’s ambassador to Indonesia.
