Jakarta. Indonesian sovereign wealth fund Danantara revealed Tuesday that the agency was in the process of closing a “huge deal” with an anonymous European food giant.

The announcement came just a week after Southeast Asia’s biggest economy inked the substantive conclusion of its free trade agreement, dubbed the CEPA, with the European Union (EU). This yet-to-be-ratified document is expected to clear the way for both inbound and outbound investments. 

Danantara’ CEO Rosan Roeslani said that the fund was eyeing to bring European technologies to advance Indonesia’s food sector, a plan that is expected to gain speed following the CEPA. Jakarta has even set up the so-called “EU Investment Desk”, a dedicated platform meant to help European businesses go through the regulatory requirements. 

Amidst these new impetuses, Danantara has been engaging in talks with a European food producer, although Rosan did not say the firm’s country of origin. The scheme is as follows: Danantara will invest in the European firm. The injected funds are expected to translate into investment inflows into Indonesia, according to Rosan.

“Danantara sees some investment potential in Europe, particularly in the food and healthcare sectors. This will allow us to use their advanced technologies in Indonesia,” Rosan told a news conference in his Jakarta office. 

“Maybe in the near future, but I can’t announce the deal just yet, although the monetary value is pretty significant. ... The investment will be in Indonesia. But we, Danantara, will invest in a European company that happens to be among the world’s largest food producers … in hopes that they can invest in Indonesia,” the minister said.

Speaking beside Rosan, EU Ambassador to Indonesia Denis Chaibi said that the European bloc viewed Danantara as a “very good vehicle” of the wider economic activities in the country. 

“When we invest here, we bring the technology, jobs, skills, all the things that are important. … If you look at all commercial partners in Indonesia, Europe is one of the fairest and equal investors. We are also very predictable and reliable,” Chaibi told the press.

Danantara has consolidated all of Indonesia’s state-owned enterprises, including ID Food. But then again, Rosan did not disclose which of Danantara's companies would take part in the deal.

The Indonesia-EU CEPA has to undergo some law-making processes before the treaty can officially take effect by early 2027. The European bloc expects the deal to give its farmers much better opportunities as Indonesia-bound dairy products, meats, fruit, and vegetables will face zero tariffs. A factsheet on the pact shows that the CEPA will offer a “more attractive regulatory environment” for EU investors in electric vehicles, renewable energy, and electronics.

Between 2019 and 2024, the EU was Indonesia’s fifth-largest foreign investor with investments totaling $15.6 billion, the government reported. Indonesia hopes the pact can spur an annual growth of between 18 and 20 percent in European investments flowing into the country.

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