Kemenperin Akan Bertemu Apple Untuk Bahas Proposal Investasi

Minister of Industry Agus Gumiwang Kartasasmita (photo: dock. kemenperin)

JAKARTA - The Indonesian Ministry of Industry met with representatives from Apple on Tuesday, January 7, to discuss the investment of the technology company in Indonesia. This investment is the main requirement for Apple to be able to sell its newest iPhone 16 products in the domestic market, Ministry officials conveyed.

Apple Inc, represented by Apple's Head of Global Affairs Nick Amma, arrived at the Ministry of Industry on Tuesday afternoon. They will hold negotiations regarding Apple's investment plan that will determine the fate of the sale of the iPhone 16 in Indonesia.

Last year, the Indonesian government banned the sale of the iPhone 16 because Apple failed to meet the requirements of at least 40% of local content on domestically sold devices.

Until now, Apple does not yet have manufacturing facilities in Indonesia which is a large market with a population of 280 million people. However, since 2018, Apple has established an application development academy in the country.

"Apple's highest representative today will come to the Ministry of Industry to discuss investment commitments that have not been fulfilled and proposals from Apple," said a spokesman for the Ministry of Industry, Febri Hendri.

Apple has not yet responded to a request for comment regarding this meeting.

The Indonesian government requires Apple to renew investment commitments every three years. Apple's latest commitment of 10 million US dollars (Rp161.4 billion) ends in 2023. To fulfill the mandate of local content, Apple is required to make a new commitment for the 2024-2026 period.

Previously, the Indonesian government revealed Apple's investment plan worth USD 1 billion (IDR 16.1 trillion) for the construction of smartphone component manufacturing factories and other products. However, the details of the investment are still in the discussion stage.

However, Minister of Industry Agus Gumiwang Kartasasmita previously assessed that the investment discourse was not sufficient. Agus said the latest Apple investment discourse was not comparable to the domestic iPhone sales value which reached Rp 32 trillion in 2023.

Therefore, he wants to encourage Apple to increase its investment in negotiations that began this week, January 7-8, 2025. "The figure of 1 billion US dollars is small when compared to the total sales in Indonesia which were recorded at around Rp. 32 trillion," said Agus, Monday, January 6.