/2014/11/14/2047710261p.jpg)
JAKARTA. State-owned telecommunications giant PT Telekomunikasi Indonesia (Telkom) kicked off on Wednesday its broadband port projects, aiming to support the government’s maritime axis vision.
Telkom’s director of enterprises and business service, Muhammad Awaluddin, said during the kick-off event that his firm would spend Rp 200 billion (US$15.5 million) to develop a digital ecosystem in 18 ports across the country —some of the government’s targeted 24 ports for its maritime axis vision.
Among the 18 broadband ports are those in Banda Aceh, Pangkal Pinang (Bangka Belitung Islands), Kuala Tanjung (North Sumatra), Dumai (Riau) and Padang (West Sumatra).
“The digital ecosystem will definitely help the country reduce waiting and dwelling times at the ports,” Awaluddin said, adding that Telkom would develop vessel monitoring systems to track and trace activities at the concerned ports.
The system would help the country reduce its dwelling time to around three days, said the Transportation Ministry’s sea transportation director, Hary Boediarto.
Dwelling time in most of Indonesia’s ports was currently between seven and eight days, compared to four days in Malaysia, according to data from Indonesia’s Centre for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS).
Earlier last year, Telkom spent some Rp 90 billion to develop a digital ecosystem at another six ports, including those in Batam (Riau Islands), Tanjung Priok (Jakarta), Tanjung Perak (East Java) and Makassar (South Sulawesi).
Telkom aims to pocket around Rp 500 billion from the operation of broadband ports this year. (koi)
