6/8/2005 - The Jakarta Post - A group of Chinese investors have committedto investing up to US$8.6 billion in Indonesia's palm oil sector over thenext five years, a senior minister said on Wednesday.

Coordinating Minister for the Economy Aburizal Bakrie said, while fallingshort of identifying the investors, he had asked the Indonesian Chamber ofCommerce and Industry (Kadin) to help follow up on the commitment.

Separately, Kadin chairman Mohamad S. Hidayat said the pledge came at atime when Indonesia desperately needs to expand its stagnant agriculturalindustry, including the palm oil sector.

"The government has asked Kadin to organize local industry players infollowing up on the commitment, as such investment would need about twomillion hectares of land," Hidayat said on the sidelines of Kadin'snational meeting.

Kadin would organize between 40 and 50 industry players to be involved inthe projects, to be located outside Java with Sumatra, Sulawesi andKalimantan the main options.

President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono is expected to officially sign the dealduring his planned visit to China in mid-July, Hidayat said.

Earlier, the government revealed that the country needed a totalinvestment of Rp 20.52 trillion (about $2.16 billion) for the plantationsector to grow by an average 6.27 percent per annum.

The investment would enable palm oil output to expand by an average 6.21percent to reach 16.74 million tons in 2009, from the estimated 13.15million tons in 2005.