$1.25b Plan to Expand North Jakarta Port

PT Pelabuhan Indonesia II (Pelindo II), a state-run Indonesian port operator, plans to raise $1.25 billion in syndicated loans to help finance the expansion of its North Jakarta port.

A weak port infrastructure in Southeast Asia's largest economy pushes up logistics costs and makes it harder for businesses to expand operations.

The company has appointed Deutsche Bank as lead arranger for the loan which will involve six lenders, Chief Executive R.J. Lino said on Monday.

"We are still waiting for government approval for the loan, which we expect to have this week," Lino said, adding that he expects to sign the loan agreement next week.

The company expects the first phase of its new Kalibaru Port to begin operations by 2017, adding 4.5 million twenty-foot equivalent units (TEU) worth of capacity to the existing Tanjung Priok port.