JAKARTA: French tyre maker Michelin will invest $500 million on a rubber processing factory and plantations in Indonesia to produce synthetic rubber for export, the Southeast Asian nation's industry minister said.
With Indonesian partner PT Barito Pacific, Michelin will build a factory in Banten in western Java and rubber plantations in Sumatra and Kalimantan, Saleh Husin told Reuters late on Wednesday.
"The ground-breaking is expected next year," Husin added.
Calls and emails on Thursday to a Michelin representative in Indonesia went unanswered.