Pelindo I Seeks to Absorb Export Potential of 13 Million Tons of CPO Riau

INDUSTRY.co.id - Dumai - PT Pelindo I (Persero) continues to optimize the port in Dumai City, Riau Province, as the largest export port of palm commodity in Sumatera Island, to absorb the export potential of crude palm oil in Riau which reaches about 13 million tons per year.

"In 2018, Dumai Port will invest substantially in the increase of bulk liquid port facilities for crude palm oil or CPO.Large liquid loading loading facility will be added from the original, it can only pump 200-300 tons per hour will continue increased to 500 tons per hour, " said GM Pelabuhan I Port Dumai Branch, Djuhaery, told Antara in Dumai on Sunday (22/10/2017)

Optimization is believed to Djuhaery will further strengthen the coastal port of Riau as the largest CPO export service in Sumatra. Dumai Port serves CPO exports up to approximately six million tons per year, much larger than Belawan Port in North Sumatra Province which serves around 3.5 million tons per year.

Pelindo is optimizing as it sees that the bulk liquid port business in Riau is very prospective, with CPO export potential now reaching 13 million tons per year and a chance to increase. Pelindo I Port of Dumai Branch can absorb only half of it, and the rest is exported by palm business actors who make their own ports.

In addition, the development opportunities of Dumai port will also be able to support the performance of the port industry in Riau, which will greatly benefit because there are mega railway projects and Sumatera toll roads to Dumai City.

Both mega projects will accelerate the distribution of manufactured goods using containers as well as palm oil products. This becomes a potential for the already complete Dumai Port.

Pelindo I Port Dumai has three docks, including A 350m long Pier for general cargo and passenger port 500m long B Dock for loading of bulk liquid and CPO transport, and Port C for 400m apart for container vessels as well as for dry bulk commodities.

Djuhaery said, specifically for Pier C, it poured an investment of up to Rp100 billion to increase the number of "mobile cranes" to the increase of container shelter facilities.

According to him, if Pelindo optimizes services and can accelerate the timing of CPO transportation to ships, the private sector in the palm business will entrust the shipping process to the company's country.

The reason is that the company is constrained by land to expand ports and will be better invested in plantations and gardens, while the logistics process to the CPO export port structure is entrusted to Pelindo I.

"We have to prepare for investments for 2018 as a whole, but in principle we must be prepared, so that they will not be ready for production facilities (CPO) but we are not ready to serve," Djuhaery said.

Dumai Port is one of three priority routes of ASEAN Roro Connectivity as mandated in the Master Plan on ASEAN Connectivity. The three ASEAN Ro-Ro ship routes are Dumai (Indonesia) - Malacca (Malaysia), Belawan - Penang (Malaysia) - Phuket (Thailand), and Bitung - Davao / General Santos (Philippines). (Ant)