Krakatau’s New Mill Could Shrink Steel Imports

President Joko Widodo inaugurated a sophisticated steel plant named Hot Strip Mill 2 owned by PT Krakatau Steel Tbk (KRAS) in Cilegon, Banten, on Tuesday (9/21). The plant uses modern and the most advanced technology in the steel industry. Krakatau claims that Indonesia is the second country to use it after the United States (US).

"The mill operation allows us to meet domestic steel needs, so we don't need to import any more," Jokowi explained. Currently, Indonesia is the second-largest steel importing country in the world. However, the government hoped that the mill could save Rp 29 trillion of foreign exchange used for steel imports and meet the rising domestic steel consumption. In the last five years, domestic steel demand has increased by 40 percent.