Adjacent to Singapore, Indonesia's low-carbon park promotes green development | Lianhe Zaobao

The global manufacturing industry is under multiple pressures, as companies not only need to meet increasingly stringent environmental, social, and governance (ESG) standards and carbon emission specifications, but also face rising domestic production costs and the need for diversified supply chain layouts. The demand for advancing overseas expansion and decarbonization transformation within the framework of sustainable development is becoming more urgent. Located just 22 kilometers from Singapore on Batam Island in Indonesia, the Tembesi Innovation District is providing impressive sustainable solutions for domestic and foreign enterprises. This next-generation low-carbon industrial park can assist various types of companies in optimizing cost management, enhancing supply chain resilience, and moving towards a decarbonization transformation that meets international standards.

Tembesi Innovation District: Leveraging Geographical Advantages to Lead Regional Expansion

The Tembesi Innovation District is jointly developed by Sembcorp Industries, a renewable energy giant from Singapore, through its subsidiary Sembcorp Development Ltd, and Indonesia's Panbil Group.

The Tembesi Innovation District has also received support from the governments of both Singapore and Indonesia. Under the "Singapore +1" strategy, companies can establish their headquarters in Singapore while setting up production bases or R&D centers on Batam Island, enjoying the business advantages of both countries: leveraging Singapore's stable and sound political and business environment, efficient connectivity and logistics facilities, while also benefiting from Batam Island's cost advantages and favorable tax regime.

Sembcorp Development and Panbil Group signed a cooperation statement for the low-carbon industrial park at the 15th Singapore-Indonesia Six Bilateral Economic Working Group Ministerial Meeting, witnessed by Indonesia's Coordinating Minister for Economic Affairs Airlangga Hartarto and Singapore's Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Trade and Industry Gan Kim Yong. (Provided by Sembcorp Industries)

In addition, as a new generation industrial area for advanced manufacturing and clean energy, the Tembesi Innovation District also offers ready-made sustainable solutions, enabling companies to accelerate regional expansion while transitioning towards low-carbon and zero-carbon operations.

Located in the core area of Batam Island, the district boasts a complete industrial ecosystem. Many well-known domestic and foreign enterprises deeply understand the importance of location and environmental advantages for their business and have established factories on Batam Island to seize opportunities, including Pegatron, New Mad Manufacturing, Bafang Group, and Hua Bao International Holdings among Chinese enterprises. International giants from Japan, Europe, the United States, Germany, Australia, and South Korea have also seized the opportunity to settle in Batam Island.

Green Planning Meets International Standards

Tengxin Park: Green and low-carbon, innovating a sustainable future. (Sembcorp Ind provided)

How does Tengxin Park support enterprises in their transition towards net-zero emissions goals? It incorporates considerations of sustainable development in its planning, including a sustainable manufacturing ecosystem, reliable clean energy, and green infrastructure.

The park covers an area of 100 hectares and includes ready-made spaces that meet green building standards, standard factories with sustainable certification, multifunctional workshops, and customizable factory buildings. The factory areas range from 542 to 3,520 square meters, with roofs equipped with insulation layers to quickly meet the hardware needs of enterprises and effectively help tenants reduce operating costs.

In terms of clean energy infrastructure, the park enhances overall energy efficiency and system stability by adopting green energy from solar power and generation bases, combined with private energy networks and long-term power purchase agreements. Additionally, the park utilizes renewable energy certificates to provide sustainable energy solutions for enterprises, enhancing resource resilience.

Batam Island: Seamless connectivity with Singapore and tax incentives

Batam Island has a superior location, with convenient transportation and seamless business connections. (Sembcorp Ind provided)

Batam Island is located close to Singapore, just 22 kilometers away, reachable in 45 minutes, with up to 80 ferry trips daily between the two locations.

Batam Island also has five transport terminals and an international airport, providing seamless connectivity by land, sea, and air with Singapore and Southeast Asia. Tengxin Park is situated in the center of the island's economic special zone, significantly shortening connectivity with the region and enhancing logistics and trade efficiency.

Since the early 2000s, the Indonesian government has regarded Batam Island as an important free trade zone for attracting foreign investment, vigorously promoting the economic special zone plan here. Therefore, enterprises in Tengxin Park can enjoy many favorable tax policies, including no import and export tariffs, value-added tax (VAT), as well as various customs incentives, including tax holidays for leading industries, tax reductions, and excess deduction tax incentives. Additionally, Indonesia has signed double taxation avoidance agreements with 57 countries and has inland free trade agreements, allowing both domestic and foreign enterprises to benefit under these agreements.

Tengxin's Four Major Advantages: An Ideal Investment Base

In addition to geographical advantages, the green low-carbon solutions and tax incentives of the Tengxin Park can help enterprises upgrade. (Provided by Sembcorp Industries)

As an experienced comprehensive developer, Sembcorp incorporated large-scale, cost-effective, and feasible low-carbon transformation considerations when planning the Tengxin Park. The four major advantages of Tengxin make it an ideal investment base for enterprises:

1. Providing Sustainable Solutions

The park offers a series of ready-made sustainable solutions, deploying solar and green energy, including solar power applications in streetlights and rooftops. In addition, the park utilizes advanced technology for wastewater recovery and industrial waste recycling, helping enterprises reduce their carbon footprint and fulfill environmental responsibilities.

2. Meeting ESG Standards and Requirements

Enterprises in the Tengxin Park can use Sembcorp's developed GoNetZero digital platform to manage renewable energy certificates, monitor carbon credits, and track emission performance. This digital carbon reduction solution supports transparent ESG reporting, assisting enterprises in complying with ESG regulations and requirements from European and American buyers.

3. Fully Utilizing Connectivity Between Two Countries

Companies that establish headquarters in Singapore and factories on Batam Island can benefit from Singapore's international business environment and the tax incentives of the Batam Free Trade Zone, enhancing regional operational efficiency and cost competitiveness.

4. Strong Investment Partners

The two major groups developing Tengxin—Sembcorp and Panbil—are both giants in Singapore and Indonesia, with practical long-term cooperative relationships. In particular, Sembcorp is a key driver in Southeast Asia, Asia, and major cities in China in terms of infrastructure and manufacturing facilities, energy development, and green growth strategies, with achievements that are widely recognized.

Panbil Group: Pioneer of Comprehensive Development on Batam Island

As a co-developer of Tengxin Park, Panbil Group has been deeply involved in Batam Island for over 30 years, with rich experience in comprehensive development. Its business spans multiple sectors, including industrial parks, residential real estate, commercial complexes, hotels, eco-tourism, and utility services. Its flagship project, Panbil Industrial Park, covers 200 hectares and is adjacent to a 260-hectare nature reserve, creating a self-sufficient modern park with high value-added manufacturing as the core driver, promoting industrial innovation and employment development.

The group has completed several landmark projects on Batam Island, such as Panbil Mall, Villa Panbil residential area, and Wyndham Panbil Batam hotel, and is actively planning for the future, advancing the development of Tengxin Park and the Tanjung Sauh Economic Zone, committed to providing investors with world-class supporting facilities, excellent infrastructure, and integrated comprehensive support services.

Sembcorp: From Wuxi to Batam, A New Generation of Park Model

Sembcorp's new industrial park in Singapore and Vietnam attracts global corporate investment. (Provided by Sembcorp Industries)

Sembcorp Industries is a publicly listed company in Singapore and a leading renewable energy company in Asia. Its subsidiary, Sembcorp Town Development, has over 35 years of operational experience and performance records, with all its industrial parks covering more than 14,800 hectares and hosting over 1,000 international and domestic corporate tenants, attracting nearly USD 58 billion in investment.

In addition to the Tenge New Park on Batam Island, Sembcorp's projects in the region also include:

1. Developing over 20 industrial parks in Vietnam, attracting nearly 1,000 domestic and foreign companies, including well-known firms such as LEGO, Panasonic, and Fujifilm, with investments exceeding USD 23 billion. 2) The Kendal Industrial Park developed in Central Java, Indonesia, has become the largest industrial town and a key hub for the clean technology supply chain.

2. The Wuxi Singapore Industrial Park, invested in China in 1993, is one of the earliest bilateral cooperation projects between Singapore and China.

Sembcorp Industries aims to expand its land reserves to 18,000 hectares by 2028 and increase the total floor area of its industrial properties to 1.5 million square meters to support the next wave of sustainable manufacturing.

Supporting Regional Growth: An Ideal Low-Carbon Launch Platform

In the face of global sustainable development challenges and risks from global supply chain disruptions, the Tenge New Park, with its strategic location, green infrastructure, and rich development experience, provides an ideal low-carbon launch platform for light to medium industries and energy-intensive enterprises, supporting their long-term and sustainable business expansion in Southeast Asia.

Visit Sembcorp's official website now to learn more about the unique advantages of the Tenge New Park.

[This article is presented by Tenge New Park]