China Development Bank (CDB) has signed a $US 4.5bn loan agreement with a consortium of Chinese and Indonesian companies to finance construction of the 142.3km Jakarta - Bandung high-speed line. The agreement between the bank and the Kereta Cepat Indonesia-China (KCIC) joint venture was signed in Beijing on May 14 as Indonesian president Mr Joko Widodo attended a high-level forum on China’s Belt and Road programme. The loan will cover 75% of the cost of the $US 6bn project, with KCIC organising the remaining 25%.

KCIC is a joint venture between China Railway Construction Corporation (CRCC) and a consortium of Indonesian state-owned enterprises led by Wijaya Karya. The line is due to open in 2019, reducing the journey time between Jakarta and Bandung to around 40 minutes, compared with around three hours on the existing 173km 1067mm-gauge line.