Asia Pacific Rayon (APR), Indonesia’s largest integrated viscose rayon production facility and Asia’s first fully integrated viscose rayon producer, was inaugurated by Indonesian President Joko Widodo in a ceremony held at APR’s main operational area in Pangkalan Kerinci in Riau, Indonesia on February 21, 2020.
Indonesia’s Minister of Industry Agus Gumiwang Kartasasmita, Minister of Trade Agus Suparmanto, Governor of Riau Syamsuar, RGE Founder and Chairman Sukanto Tanoto, and RGE Director Anderson Tanoto were also present at the ceremony.
Speaking at the inauguration, President Joko Widodo (colloquially known as Jokowi) warmly welcomed APR’s investment in the development of the national textile industry in Indonesia, stating that the role of the private sector is influential in driving economic growth.
“Our garment industry should be greater than Vietnam. We already have our raw materials here, such as viscose rayon, to support the industry,” said Jokowi.
RGE Director Anderson Tanoto also spoke at the ceremony, expressing his gratitude to the President for inaugurating APR, and highlighting that the company has created 1,200 jobs and brought in an annual USD 130 million in export revenue, in addition to reducing Indonesia’s reliance on imported textile materials.
As part of the ceremony, President Jokowi performed a symbolic sealing and flagging off an export container carrying close to 10,200 tonnes of viscose rayon fibre for shipment to Turkey (one of the 15 countries APR exports its products to), took a tour of APR’s factory and mill, and also signed a plaque.
The President also took the time to visit APRIL Group's nursery and tissue culture facility – which are located in the same production complex as APR - highlighting that world-class technologies are available in Pelalawan Regency in Riau, and that home-grown and developed raw materials add to the nation’s competitiveness with the rest of the world.
It is estimated that APR may generate foreign exchange revenues exceeding IDR 1.77 trillion (USD 130 million), and reduce dependence on imported raw materials by about IDR 2.01 trillion (USD 140 million) on an annual basis.
