PT PELINDO TO BUILD MUARA SABAK PORT

Jakarta, July 31 (ANTARA) - State-owned port operator PT Pelabuhan Indonesia (Pelindo-II) and the Jambi provincial administration have reached an agreement to build Muara Sabak port in the province.

At a function to sign a memorandum of understanding (MoU) between PT Pelindo-II and Jambi Governor Zulkifli Nurdin on development of port and navigation facilities along the Batanghari river in Jambi here on Friday, Transportation Minister Jusman Syafii Djamal said the Muara Sabak port was expected to be a superior harbor.
Jusman said Muara Sabat is close to the Malacca Strait and therefore it had a more strategic position than the port in Batam.

Accordingly, the transportation minister expressed hope that the realization of the Muara Sabak port project would be supported by all parties.

"State Minister for State Enterprises Sofyan Djalil and I will continue to monitor the process of Muara Sabak port development," Jusman said.

Meanwhile, Jambi Governor Zulkifli Nurdin said the investment for the development of the port was obtained from the regional budget, and consisted of Rp200 billion for the construction of a a bridge and a 300-km road from Jambi to Muara Sabak.

"The road is expected to be completed at the end of this year," the governor said, adding that investment from PT Pelindo-II until 2011 was Rp300 billion for the port development.

On the occasion, State Enterprises Minister Sofyan Djalil said PT Pelindo should not only build its own empire but start also to establish cooperation with regional governments and other parties.

Djalin said the cooperation between PT Pelindo-II and the Jambi provincial administration was expected to work out productively in the local people's interest.

The cooperation, he said, was the right kind for Jambi and therefore PT Pelindo should be encouraged to continue cooperation with other provincial administrations.

"PT Pelindo should not build its own empire. For me, the most important thing for the company is to give its best possible service to the people rather than making big profits for itself," Djalil said.

The minister also asked all state-owned enterprises (BUMNs) to start to dream about creating something great for the people based on comprehensive concepts.