Jakarta – The Ministry of Industry (Kemenperin) is demanding that Apple make significant investments in Indonesia, as the company’s products have generated massive sales in the country.
Secretary General of Kemenperin, Eko Cahyanto, revealed that Apple’s product sales in Indonesia throughout 2023 reached Rp 50 trillion. This amount includes the sale of approximately 2.3 million units of iPhones, iPads, and accessories.
“The total sales of iPads, other devices, and accessories they (Apple) sold here are around Rp 50 trillion,” Eko said during a discussion at the launch of the 2024 Indonesian Economic Report (LPI), held virtually on Wednesday (22/1/2025).
Given these high sales figures, the government is urging Apple to invest in Indonesia to ensure added value for the country.
“We demand their investment. We want to secure the value-added benefits as well. Compared to our competitors like Thailand or Vietnam, Indonesia might not be very important to Apple in terms of their industrial process, as we only have one supplier here. This is what we are demanding so that we can truly secure our market,” Eko stated.
As such, Apple has been asked to revise its investment proposal to comply with the Domestic Component Level (TKDN) policy. This ensures that all goods sold in Indonesia, particularly those related to national interests, benefit the domestic economy.
“We are still asking Apple to improve its proposal so that we can gain added value. At the very least, they should invest in Indonesia because, fundamentally, the level of investment should correlate with the TKDN value,” Eko explained.
Apple’s Investment Plan Only Rp 3.4 Trillion
Apple plans to build a factory in Batam to produce AirTags, an iPhone accessory, with an investment value of US$ 1 billion or around Rp 16.2 trillion (at an exchange rate of Rp 16,200). The factory is expected to supply approximately 60% of global demand.
Spokesperson for Kemenperin, Febri Hendri Antoni Arif, said the factory would start production in 2026 and create around 2,000 jobs. However, the actual investment value for the factory is estimated to be only US$ 200 million or Rp 3.24 trillion, not US$ 1 billion.
“Based on our technocratic assessment, the real investment value for Apple’s AirTag factory in Batam is only US$ 200 million. This value is much smaller than the US$ 1 billion investment proposal submitted by Apple,” Febri explained in a written statement.
According to Kemenperin’s technocratic calculations, projected export value and raw material purchase costs cannot be included as part of the capital expenditure (capex) investment. The investment value is measured only by capex, which consists of land purchases, building construction, and machinery/technology.
Including the projected export value and raw material purchases in Apple’s investment figures inflates the investment value to US$ 1 billion, whereas the actual figure is only US$ 200 million.
“If Apple’s investment of US$ 1 billion were fully allocated for capex, such as land, building, and machinery/technology purchases, it would be even better. Imagine the number of jobs that could be created with an investment of US$ 1 billion. The impact would be significant,” Febri concluded.
