JAKARTA: Indonesia is deepening its economic partnership with China through a new initiative aimed at attracting industrial investment to the Batang Special Economic Zone (SEZ) in Central Java.

Coordinating Minister for Economic Affairs, Airlangga Hartarto, said the project, part of the Two Countries Twin Parks (TCTP) programme, is expected to generate about 16 trillion rupiah or roughly US$1 billion in investment.

"The government continues to use SEZs to attract foreign investment, with several zones prioritised for development this year," he stated in a statement following a meeting with President Prabowo Subianto yesterday (March 18).

The announcement comes ahead of Prabowo's scheduled visit to the Batang SEZ on Thursday, Airlangga said, adding that the TCTP collaboration was discussed during his meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping in Beijing last year.

Indonesia is also set to expand its Nongsa Digital Park in Batam, with several data centres planned for development in the coming months, he said.