JAKARTA: Saudi Arabian oil and gas company Aramco has committed to investing US$10 billion in Indonesia to build a refinery and a storage and distribution system, a high-ranking official has said.
“The meeting with the Saudi Arabian finance minister [discussed] the intention of Saudi Arabian company Aramco to build a refinery and a storage and distribution [system] in Indonesia,” Cabinet Secretary Pramono Anung told reporters on the sidelines of a meeting with a number of Saudi Arabian ministers on Saturday evening.
“The government is currently finishing up on a presidential regulation allowing private [investors] to invest in refineries. It has been prepared before, it’s not just specifically for Aramco,” he added, as quoted by Kontan.co.id.
The government expects that with the new regulation, Indonesia will add new refineries. Other than investment talks on the energy sector, Bank Negara Indonesia’s (BNI) plan to open branches in Jeddah, Mecca and Medina was also discussed in the meeting.
BNI’s presence in the three cities is expected to ease the concerns of Indonesians going on pilgrimage.
