Kemenperin Tak Restui Import KRL, KCI Bakal Kekurangan Kereta?

KRL illustration (Photo: Doc. Antara)

JAKARTA - The Ministry of Industry (Kemenperin) through the Directorate General of Metal, Machinery, Transportation Equipment and Electronics (ILMATE) is reportedly not providing support to PT KCI regarding imports of KRL gates. In fact, the need for carriages needs to be increased considering that until next year there will be dozens of trains that are no longer suitable for use, aka hadus being retired.

PH&H Public Policy Interest Group Agus Pambagio said, there will be 10 Jabodetabek KRL series this year and 16 series in 2024 that must be retired. Instead, PT KCI must immediately order a new KRL series or used marks.

"For this reason, PT KCI has ordered replacement KRL in accordance with the number of KRLs that have retired. On the one hand, the government wants PT KCI to order Jabodetabek KRL from PT INKA, but PT INKA is only able to provide KRL for PT KCI orders in 2025 at a high price," Agus said in a written statement received by VOI, Monday, February 27.

PT KCI is known to have signed an MoU with PT INKA for the KRL order, but due to the PT INKA products that have not been realized in 2023 and 2024, PT KAI has requested permission from the Ministry of Transportation (Kemenhub) to be able to import the procurement of used KRL from Japan, of course, through good governance.

Agus assessed that the import licensing of the used KRL turned out to be very complicated bureaucracy and had the potential to interfere with Jabodetabek KRL services.

The President Director of PT KCI itself has sent a Dispensation Application Letter in the Context of Application for Capital Goods Import Approval in Non-New Conditions to the Ministry of Trade through the Director General of Foreign Trade (Daglu) dated September 13, 2022.

Then, the Director General of Trade wrote to the Director General of Metal, Machinery, Transportation Equipment and Electronics (ILMATE) of the Ministry of Industry regarding Applications for Inputation and Response to Plans for Importing Goods in Non-New Conditions by PT KCI dated September 28, 2022.

"Through the letter, PT KCI plans to import Capital Goods in Non-New Conditions (BMTB) in the form of 120 KRL Type E217 Units for 2023 needs and 228 KRL Type E217 Units for the 2024 fiscal year with Tariff/HS Code 8603.10.00," said Agus.

In terms of imports, he continued, the Ministry of Industry has issued technical rules for importing used capital goods through the Minister of Industry Regulation Number 14 of 2016. The regulation strengthens the Regulation of the Minister of Trade Number 127 of 2015 concerning Provisions for Importing Capital Goods in Unnew Conditions.

"In the end, the Director General of Daglu of the Ministry of Trade has received a letter of response from the Director General of ILMATE of the Ministry of Industry dated January 6, 2023 (it takes four months to answer) which states that technical considerations on the import plan by PT KCI cannot be followed up with the government's focus on increasing domestic production, as well as import substitution through the Domestic Product User Improvement Program (P3DN)," said Agus.

The essence of the problem, according to Agus, was that PT KCI's application to import used trains from Japan was rejected by the Ministry of Industry. Therefore, he questioned the fate of 200,000 passengers per day, which would not be discussed by the Jabodetabek KRL.

"The chaos at Manggarai Station because it designed the wrong position of the escalator and elevator which caused a buildup of passengers alone has angered the president. What if 200,000 passengers are more per day piling up?" he said.

Responding to this, Agus suggested PT KCI must immediately find a way out to immediately meet the needs of the KRL fleet this year amid limited funds due to the unlicensed increase in tariffs.

The fulfillment of the new KRL fleet, continued Agus, took 34 months after the contract, while the procurement of the used KRL fleet took 12 months after the contract.

The total required KRL until the end of 2024 reaches 348 trains, either new or used.

"What if PT INKA faces problems, so that the procurement schedule is delayed or past 2025? Does this urgent KRL still have to be carried out with high desire?" he added.