ITOCHU Corporation (headquartered in Minato-ku, Tokyo; Masahiro Okafuji, President & CEO; hereinafter “ITOCHU”) announced today that work has commenced to clear the newly acquired additional 200 hectares of land for development in Karawang International Industrial City (Jakarta; hereinafter “KIIC”), a joint venture developed by ITOCHU and Sinar Mas Group that has operated for more than 20 years.

KIIC is situated 60 km (about 90 minutes east via expressway) away from Jakarta CBD, and at present approximately 140 companies (more than 85% of which are Japanese-affiliated) are operating their factories in a total existing development area of 1,200 hectares. The management and administration services provided by this industrial park to the tenant businesses have earned high regard, and in 2013 the development received the Indonesian government Ministry of Industry’s award for best industrial park. In addition to the sale of existing industrial parks that are equipped with a range of incidental facilities, it will now be possible to respond flexibly to a diverse range of needs by also offering the high value-added complementary services of leased factories and leased warehouses. The move is scheduled to take place in the spring of 2017.

With the expansion of the middle-income tier, robust demand from the internal consumer market in Indonesia is expected to continue. Moreover, forecasts of economic growth sustained by the demographic bonus have led to a succession of consumer goods manufacturers entering the market, and expectations in respect of industrial park development are steadily rising.

ITOCHU is planning to deploy its industrial real estate (such as logistics facilities) development know-how cultivated in Japan to the wider Asian region, with a view to contributing to the overseas business development of its customers not only in the manufacturing industry but also in the service industry.