Indonesian Minister Luhut Talks of Negotiation Progress with Tesla

TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - Coordinating Minister for Maritime Affairs and Investment Luhut Binsar Pandjaitan revealed the latest developments in negotiations with the US electric car manufacturer, Tesla Inc. He said the negotiation is progressing.

However, he said could not disclose much about what was being bargained because the Indonesian government is still bound by a non-disclosure agreement (NDA) with Tesla.

“There is an NDA, but I could say that we have very advanced progress,” said Luhut on Monday, March 20.

When asked whether the company owned by Elon Musk is still interested in building a factory in the archipelago, Luhut refused to comment. “I am still attached to the NDA,” he repeated.

He hoped that the policy of providing subsidies and fiscal incentives for the sales of electric vehicles could attract investment for electric vehicle manufacturers.

Apart from Tesla Inc., Luhut claimed that the government is negotiating with a Chinese company BYD. To date, there are two car factories producing battery-powered cars, namely Hyundai and Wuling in Indonesia. Luhut also said that Hyundai would even build a new factory.

“Hyundai has already had [plans to build a new factory]. We see that Wuling is really good. We target one more firm, BYD, to enter [Indonesia],” Luhut added.

In order to boost the use of electric vehicles, Luhut said the government provided incentives for the purchase of electric motorbikes and the conversion of conventional motorbikes to electric ones which takes effect on Monday, March 20. The incentives for electric cars and electric buses will be announced on April 1, 2023.

ANTARA

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