Patimban Port Inaugurated, Jokowi Asks Not Only Successful Automotive Exports

President of the Republic of Indonesia, Joko Widodo. (Photo: Setkab)

JAKARTA - Patimban Port has been inaugurated and will start operating on Sunday, December 20. After being inaugurated, the port carried out the first shipment or export of 140 cars to Brunei Darussalam. President Joko Widodo requested that this port not only support automotive exports.

President Joko Widodo (Jokowi) has inaugurated the inauguration of the Patimban International Port in Subang, West Java. He said that the first phase of Patimban International Port was one of the national strategic projects that was successfully completed amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

Jokowi said that in the first phase, the port would serve 3.75 million twenty foot equivalent units (TEUs) or containers and was planned to be 7 million TEUs for containers in the third stage.

"With a car terminal capacity of 218 thousand CBU cars and later 600 thousand vehicles, it will increase our automotive exports to the global market," he said, during the inauguration of the Patimban Port which was broadcast virtually, Sunday, December 20.

Initial export of 140 cars

On the same occasion, Minister of Transportation Budi Karya Sumadi said that in the first operation, Patimban Port transported 140 cars for export. The export destination is Brunei Darussalam.

"This first operation will carry out the first export of 140 units of Toyota, Daihatsu and Suzuki cars on the Suzuka Express ship to Brunei Darussalam," he said.

Hundreds of the exported cars were sent using the MV Ship. The Panama-flagged Suzuka Express. This ship is owned by PT Toyofuji Shipping Co., Ltd. The ship weighs GT. 43,810, length 180 m, beam 30 m, draft 7.7 m. The ship also has a speed (heading) of 14.6 Knots.

Previously, Director General of Land Transportation Budi Setiyadi said the volume of vehicle exports from Patimban Port in 2025 was estimated to reach 1 million units per year.

This projection comes from the results of a study conducted with the Association of Motor Vehicle Industries (Gaikindo) regarding the potential for exports through Patimban to countries such as Latin America, North America to Africa.

Patimban Port is one of the national strategic projects that began construction in 2018 and is targeted for complete completion in 2027.

Cheaper Costs

The presence of Patimban Port, said the Minister of Transportation, Budi, would be synergized with the operations of Tanjung Priok Port in Jakarta. This is done to encourage cost efficiency and logistics delivery time.

"In the future (Patimban Port) will be synergized with Tanjung Priok so that it can boost time and logistics cost efficiency and time and cost efficiency," he said.

Minister of Transportation Budi Karya. (Photo: Doc. Kemenhub)

Likewise, the Indonesian Truck Entrepreneurs Association (Aptrindo) hopes that the operation of Patimban Port in Subang, West Java can make tariffs more competitive. This will also give truck entrepreneurs many options.

Chairman of Aptrindo Gemilang Tarigan said that the presence of Patimban would reduce the density at the Tanjung Priok port which is currently experiencing congestion. Then, Patimban will also accelerate logistics turnover in the West Java area.

[/ read_more]

"Because all this time Tanjung Priok has been supported by goods from Habar, the industry can choose Priok or Patimban. If there is competition, the costs will be cheaper again," he said, Sunday, December 20.

Gemilang said, 70 percent of the market from Patimban Port will come from West Java. He believes that the potential for this market extends in West Java from Bekasi to Bandung because the location of the majority of industrial areas comes from West Java.

However, he continued, at the initial stage the completion of the Patimban development would not be effective in reducing congestion in Priok because the infrastructure built was still inadequate.

Meanwhile, said Gemilang, the congestion currently occurring in Priok will not occur in Patimban because so far the congestion points originate from access outside the toll road. The government, he continued, is also completing road infrastructure in West Java with fast trains and toll roads that will be developed to help unravel this congestion.

As is known, the Patimban Port has been officially operated by President Joko Widodo. Even so, the auction for the port operator that supports the operation of Tanjung Priok Port is still ongoing.

Ministry of Transportation spokesperson Adita Irawati said the port operator auction is still ongoing. However, the government targets the operator company to be determined by the end of this year.

Jokowi Asks Patimban to Support Exports of Other Products

President Jokowi asked Patimban Port to support the export of other products, not only automotive. One of them is a product that drives MSMEs. He conveyed this at the inauguration of the port's first operation in the north of West Java.

"It must support the export of other products that drive the economy of MSMEs, the agricultural sector, creative industries, and other products, so that they are able to compete in the global market," said Jokowi.

The former governor of DKI Jakarta has asked the ministers, governors, regents, mayors and related officials, along with MSME business actors, cooperatives, and private companies to maximize the infrastructure that has been built.

"This is in order to stimulate the economy and improve the welfare of our people," he said.

- https://voi.id/berita/23737/resmikan-ekspor-perdana-di-patimban-jokowi-pelabuhan-ini-bantu-kurangi-kemacetan-di-bekasi-jakarta

- https://voi.id/bernas/20511/pelabuhan-patimban-tak-boleh-jadi-ancaman-untuk-tanjung-priok

- https://voi.id/bernas/20012/patimban-pelabuhan-sejuta-harapan

[/ read_more]