REPUBLIKA.CO.ID, JAKARTA -- Widely diversified corporation PT Astra International Tbk (ASII) said it would raise its capital expenditure (Capex) to Rp13.7 trillion for this year from Rp10 trillion last year to support its division of infrastructure, logistics and property.
Astra International is better known as the country's largest automotive company leading in both car and motorcycle production.
"The focus of the corporation in 2016 will shift slightly to the business division of infrastructure, logistics and property," its President Director Prijono Sugiarto said here on Wednesday.
Prijono said the Astra Group has six business divisions also including automotive, financial service, heavy equipment and mining, agribusiness and information technology divisions.
He said Rp5.6 trillion or 39 percent of the capex are set aside for infrastructure, logistics and property division mainly to finance a number of toll road projects.
The automotive division will share 20 percent of the capex, agribusiness 15 percent, heavy equipment (United Tractor) 21 percent and other sectors 5 percent, he said.
He said the majority of fund is from internal cash with external funds such as loans making up the rest.
A director of the corporation Paulus Bambang Widjanarko said Rp1.3 trillion of the Rp5.6 trillion for the infrastructure would be used to finish the Mojokerto-Kertosono (Moker) toll road project.
Astra also is set to finish the construction of the third section of the 40 kilometer Bawen-Salatiga toll road in Central Java.
Its Cinere-Serpong toll road project is still in the land clearing process which has been 60 percent completed. Astra has also won the contract to build a 30 kilometer Serpong-Balaraja toll road in Banten to be divided into three phases.
For the property sector, Astra would allocate Rp1.6 trillion to finish the construction of the Astra Tower (Menara Astra) at Jalan Jenderal Sudirman in Jakarta and the Anandamaya Residence , Paulus said.
"Menara Astra is to be completed in 2017 and Anandamaya to follow in 2018," he said.
Astra Group reported 22 percent fall year-on-year in net profit to Rp3.1 trillion in the first quarter of 2016 with net income shrinking 7 percent.
Prijono said the sharpest fall in net profit was recorded in the heavy equipment and mining division down 55 percent to Rp442 billion,followed by the financial division shrinking 46 percent to Rp641 billion.
Its automotive division also suffered a decline of 3 percent in net profit to Rp1.58 trillion.