Indonesia’s Finance Ministry is finalizing plans to acquire a 60 percent stake in PT Kereta Cepat Indonesia China (KCIC), the operator of the Whoosh high-speed railway.
The Indonesian government is in the final stages of acquiring a 60 percent stake in PT Kereta Cepat Indonesia China (KCIC), the consortium operating the Whoosh high-speed rail line. The ownership transfer, managed via the Ministry of Finance, targets completion by mid-September 2026.
Previously, that 60 percent equity was held by a consortium of state-owned enterprises under PT Pilar Sinergi BUMN Indonesia (PSBI), which included PT Kereta Api Indonesia (KAI), PT Wijaya Karya, PT Jasa Marga, and PTPN III. The remaining 40 percent stake in the Jakarta-Bandung high-speed railway remains in the hands of the Chinese consortium Beijing Yawan HSR Co. Ltd.
Restructuring the Debt and Shielding the State Budget
According to the Ministry of Finance’s Director General of State Assets, Evita Manthovani, the transaction is designed to avoid direct State Budget outlays to fulfill the obligations previously tied to PT PSBI. Speaking during a press conference in Jakarta on Friday, September 18, 2026, Evita noted that the ministry is conducting due diligence and evaluating the value of the shares to be transferred. The Finance Ministry is currently conducting due diligence and evaluating the value of the PSBI shares to be transferred,
Evita said during a press conference in Jakarta on Friday.
Pengalihan saham PT PSBI ke pemerintah melalui Kementerian Keuangan saat ini masih dalam proses finalisasi,
ujar Evita dalam konferensi pers APBN KiTa Edisi September 2026 di Kementerian Keuangan, Jakarta, Jumat, 18 September 2026. Evita menyampaikan, soal skema telah ditetapkan, dan telah dibahas secara detail. Tentunya ini sesuai dengan harapan, tidak dengan melibatkan APBN secara langsung dalam pemenuhan kewajiban PT PSBI,
ujarnya.
Under the restructuring scheme outlined in Book II of the Financial Note accompanying the 2027 Draft State Budget, the Finance Ministry acquires the equity participation from investment management agency Danantara Indonesia at no upfront cost. In return, the ministry assumes responsibility for future debt servicing of the high-speed rail link. The debt restructuring establishes an annual installment scheme of approximately Rp1 trillion, equivalent to around US$56.7 million, spread over an 80-year term, which will be managed through a designated Special Mission Vehicle (SMV) or Public Service Agency (BLU).
Appointing a Financial Institution as a Fiscal Buffer
To manage the project’s liabilities, the government plans to utilize a designated Special Mission Vehicle (SMV) or Public Service Agency under the Finance Ministry. Indonesia’s Finance Minister Purbaya Yudhi Sadewa said the management of debt linked to the Jakarta-Bandung high-speed railway, known as the Whoosh, will be transferred to the Finance Ministry on September 15, 2026, while the government is still discussing how the debt will be repaid. The details are still being discussed. What is certain is that it will be handed over to us around September 15,
Purbaya said in Jakarta on Friday, August 28. Initial plans pointed toward PT Penjaminan Infrastruktur Indonesia (Persero), or PT PII, a Finance Ministry SMV, to manage the debt of PT Kereta Cepat Indonesia China (KCIC), the company operating the Whoosh railway.
Under this arrangement, PT PII will provide a joint guarantee under a first-loss arrangement, meaning it would absorb losses within its guaranteed portion before other parties bear the remaining risk. Purbaya has not yet disclosed which SMVs will be appointed but said the government could involve at least two entities. “We could involve several SMVs under the Finance Ministry. But I have not announced them yet because we don’t know for certain and discussions are still underway. It could be two. We could also use a smaller SMV and a larger one. We’ll see which scheme is most appropriate,” he said.
Economists, however, warned that placing Whoosh under a financial institution with limited technical expertise could complicate oversight of safety and maintenance standards while doing little to address the railway’s persistent cash flow problems.
Leadership Transition and International Coordination
The ownership and debt transfer moves forward despite a recent leadership transition at the Ministry of Finance from Purbaya Yudhi Sadewa to Suahasil Nazara. Danantara Indonesia CEO and Investment Minister Rosan Roeslani confirmed that the management transfer remains on track despite the leadership transition at the Finance Ministry from Purbaya Yudhi Sadewa to Suahasil Nazara.
Meanwhile, the broader structural shift has also involved coordination with the State-Owned Enterprises Management Agency (BP BUMN). Securing the transaction includes regular monitoring and supervision, periodic performance reporting, and closer coordination between the government and Danantara, Indonesia’s sovereign wealth management agency, to provide necessary support for the Whoosh project, alongside strengthening risk management within PT Kereta Api Indonesia (KAI), which is involved in the project’s ownership structure. On the diplomatic front, Coordinating Economy Minister Airlangga Hartarto told reporters on Thursday that the plan had been communicated with the Chinese counterpart and that they responded “well”.
As the ministry finalizes the share transfers and drafts a supporting Presidential Regulation, the administration faces the challenge of balancing long-term fiscal safeguards against operational oversight for Indonesia’s high-speed rail corridor.