Rosan Outlines Six Downstream Projects Set for January Groundbreaking

JAKARTA, Investortrust.id — Indonesia will begin construction on six downstream industrial projects worth a combined $6 billion in January, marking an early phase of President Prabowo Subianto’s push to move the economy up the value chain.

Rosan Roeslani, investment and downstream minister and chief executive of Danantara, said the projects cover bauxite processing, sustainable fuels, bioenergy, and agriculture.

“Bauxite, the aluminum refinery in Mempawah that I remember, then a refinery in Cilacap, and then in Banyuwangi,” Rosan said after meeting President Prabowo Subianto at the Presidential Palace complex in Jakarta.

The largest project is an aluminum smelter in Mempawah, West Kalimantan, with planned investment of about $2.4 billion to process alumina into aluminum. A separate smelter grade alumina facility, also in Mempawah, is valued at around $890 million.

In the energy sector, the government plans to build a bioaviation fuel, or bioavtur, facility in Cilacap, Central Java, with investment of roughly $1.1 billion. The project is intended to support domestic fuel supply while advancing Indonesia’s low carbon transition.

Rosan said the January groundbreaking would also include an integrated coconut processing facility in Morowali, Central Sulawesi, valued at about $100 million and already under development.

Additional projects include a bioethanol plant worth around $80 million and five poultry breeding facilities spread across 12 locations.

“These six projects will begin groundbreaking this month,” Rosan said, adding that the government was accelerating execution after preparatory work had been completed.

The plan was echoed earlier this week by Prasetyo Hadi, who said a total of 18 downstream projects are expected to enter construction phases in February and March, underscoring the scale of the government’s industrial pipeline.

Danantara, Indonesia’s newly formed state investment holding company, is designed to manage and deploy state capital more strategically across priority sectors, including mining, energy, food security, and manufacturing. The vehicle is intended to crowd in private and foreign investment while improving coordination across state owned enterprises.

The downstream push aligns with President Prabowo Subianto’s ambition to transform Indonesia into a high income, industrialized economy by 2045, the centenary of independence. By shifting from raw material exports to value added production, the government aims to strengthen economic sovereignty, create higher quality jobs, and reduce exposure to commodity price cycles.