Tonasa signs contract for 11 new shipping vessels

PT Pelayaran Tonasa Lines & PT Dok & Perkapalan Surabaya are to build 11 shipping vessel unitswith an investment of IDR1.26trn (US$137m) and have signed three cooperation contracts, Bisnis Indonesia reports.

Commenting on the agreement on the sidelines of the signing ceremony, President Director of PT Pelayaran Tonasa Lines Wahab Candoko, said: "Currently, we already have 18 vessels, and two of them are rented vessels. With the additional 11 vessels, we will have a total of 31."

The signing was witnessed by an Independent Commissioner of PT Semen Gresik Tbk Achmad Jazidie and Managing Director of PT Semen Tonasa Sattar Taba. The ceremony covered procurement contract of two self-propelled barge cement carrier with a capacity of 8000t, letter of intent on the provision of four self-propelled barge cement carrier for a capacity of 8000t, and five units of self-propelled barge coal carrier for 8500t, and the memorandum of agreement for repairing vessels owned by PT Tonasa Lines.

According to him, the investment of 11 new vessels is to anticipate the surge in cement production to 6.5Mt from 4Mt in 2011 following the operation of the Tonasa V cement plant in the end of 2012. The construction of the 11 vessels, he added, will be carried out gradually. In the first phase, PT Dok & Perkapalan Surabaya will construct the first two vessels at a price of IDR115bn per unit and are expected to complete the development in early 2013.