Kaltara Green Industrial Estate Built On The Land Of The Brother Of The Minister Of State-Owned Enterprises Conglomerate Garibaldi 'Boy' Thohir, Luhut: There Is No Other Choice, This Is His Fortune

Coordinating Minister for Maritime Affairs and Investment Luhut Binsar Pandjaitan. (Irfan Meidianto/VOI)

JAKARTA - President Joko Widodo (Jokowi) has just conducted a groundbreaking or laying the first stone for the Indonesian Green Industrial Zone in Bulungan Regency, North Kalimantan. Interestingly, the project was actually built on land owned by the older brother of the Minister of SOEs, Erick Thohir, namely Garibaldi Thohir or Boy Thohir.

Coordinating Minister for Maritime Affairs and Investment Luhut Binsar Pandjaitan admitted that at first he did not know if the land used for the construction of the Indonesian Industrial Park (KIPI) belonged to Boy Thohir as Chair of the Indonesian Consortium.

"Honestly, we didn't understand who owned the land here," he said at the Groundbreaking event for the Indonesian Industrial Park (KIPI) in Bulungan Regency, North Kalimantan, Tuesday, December 21.

Furthermore, Luhut explained that after his party sent a team to conduct a field survey in the area, it was revealed that the owner of the land was the boss of Adaro Energy, Boy Thohir.

"After we visited this area, we just found out that the owner was Pak Boy Thohir," he said.

Luhut said that the decision to choose the green industry development on Boy Thohir's land was purely the result of an investment calculation. According to him, there is no other choice because Boy Thohir's land is the most attractive in the area.

"There is no other choice. Because of all the land in this area, the most interesting is this area. So maybe Pak Boy Thohir's sustenance is too," he said.

Previously reported, President Joko Widodo (Jokowi) inaugurated the groundbreaking of the industrial area and international port in Tanah Kuning-Mangkupadi, Bulungan, North Kalimantan, today, Tuesday, December 21, 2021.

Jokowi said this area was built on 16,400 hectares of land and the target in the future will be expanded to 30 thousand hectares. According to Jokowi, the leap in Indonesia's economic transformation will start from the region.

Furthermore, Jokowi said Indonesia would enter into the downstreaming and industrialization of raw materials. So that later all the exported materials are finished goods that will provide great added value to the economy. According to him, many products from the green industry will emerge from this industrial area.

"In North Kalimantan, almost everything is finished goods. So that providing added value provides a large added value for our country. Because we sell it already in the form of finished goods, this is a leap that we want to take," he said.