REPUBLIKA.CO.ID, BANDAR LAMPUNG - Fiscal policy in Indonesia hampers ship building industry, according to Amir Gunawan, the president director of PT Daya Radar Utama on Saturday. The policy hardens the domestic built ship to compete with foreign product.
Without the import duties, ships built in the country could be cheaper than those built abroad, he said, adding the government should seriously address this problem.
"The fiscal policy has discourages innovation among shipbuilding industrialists in the country as they chose to import components rather than seeking to produce them locally," he said.
Bank interest rates are also higher in the country ranging from 12 to 13 percent, he said. While China and Vietnam subsidize industries producing transport equipment.
Indonesia once had Bank Bapindo which offered credits specially for infrastructure projects, but now the bank has been defunct.
PT Daya Radar Utama, a domestic shipbuilding company, built KRI Teluk Bintuni 520. The ship can transport heavy military equipment such as Leopard tanks. The ship has 120 meters long with the speed of 16,000 knots, supported by two units of machine each with a capacity of 3,285 KW.