Jakarta. Sovereign wealth fund Danantara said Thursday that it would welcome investments that could create numerous jobs as Indonesia mulls setting up a $6 billion state textile firm.

Earlier this week, senior minister Airlangga Hartarto revealed that Indonesia was considering establishing a state textile company. The move is expected to save the labor-intensive industry and will rely on Danantara for financial backing worth up to $6 billion. Asked about this plan, Danantara’s boss Rosan Roeslani told reporters that whatever investment decision the fund makes has undergone a thorough feasibility study.

“There are certain parameters that an investment has to meet, including the job creation. We [Danantara] are actually open to investments whose return may be lower than what our parameters expect, but can create many jobs. The textile industry has huge potential as a job maker,” Rosan said in Jakarta.

Rosan neither confirmed nor denied whether this plan included taking over Sritex. The Central Java-based textile giant was once the largest of its kind in the country, but declared bankruptcy last year over unpaid debts. Sritex’s shutdown caused nearly 11,000 people to lose their jobs.

“We will take a look at the potential, especially if it is a distressed asset. As long as we are sure that we can turn things around through restructuring to the greatest degree possible. We are already doing this in other state enterprises that need fixing, not just from a capital standpoint, but also the market and offtaker,” Rosan said.

He went on to say that Danantara had not come to a conclusive decision on whether it would create an entirely new company from scratch. A day earlier, Airlangga had said that the state textile company “would be entirely a new firm, and not reviving an existing one”, indirectly shutting down the possibility of a Sritex revival.

According to the Central Statistics Agency (BPS), the textile industry made up 0.75% of the total workforce in the manufacturing industry as of 2024. Apparel industry recorded a higher share in the manufacturing workforce at 2%.

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