Ministry Of Transportation Released KM Belt Nusantara 88 To Operate On North Maluku Sea Toll Road

JAKARTA - The Ministry of Transportation (Kemenhub) has completed the construction of the Pioneer Belt Nusantara 88 Ship to support the Sea Highway program. This pioneer ship will sail from Tanjung Priok Port, North Jakarta to Pangkalan Sanana, North Maluku.

"We continue to build pioneer ships to support the Sea Toll program which is one of the Government's priority programs in order to optimize logistics distribution to eliminate disparities in logistics prices, especially in Remote, Disadvantaged, Outermost and Border (3TP) areas," said Minister of Transportation Budi Karya Sumadi, Tuesday, December 8th.

Minister of Transportation Budi said that the construction of this ship was an Operational Cooperation (KSO) between the Ministry of Transportation and PT Dok Perkapalan and Kodja Bahari and PT. Krakatau Shipyard. This cooperation is a form of government trust in national shipyards.

"This ship is the work of the nation's children. We entrust the building of these ships to national shipyards so that they can continue to grow and develop. Hopefully this ship can be used properly, "he added.

The Minister of Transportation also advised that shipping safety remains a priority and remains consistent in implementing health protocols in marine transportation modes as long as the Covid-19 Pandemic has not ended.

Since its launch in 2015, the Sea Toll program has continued to experience improvements and developments, both in terms of infrastructure, routes, fleets, cargo numbers and capacity.

According to him, from 2015, the Ministry of Transportation has built 100 units of Sea Highway support vessels, consisting of 60 units of Perintis ships, 15 units of Container ships, 20 units of Rede ships, and 5 units of Livestock ships.

The number of sea toll routes for freight transport has more than tripled, from only three routes in 2015 to six route routes (2016), all of which are assignments to develop to 26 routes in 2020 with 100 transit ports. Meanwhile, the sea toll route which pioneered the transportation of people and goods developed from 86 routes in 2015 to 110 routes in 2020.