Solo, C Java, ANTARA JATENG - The Kendal Industrial Estate (KIK), which is owned by PT Jababeka Tbk, said it would build 100,000 units of houses for workers as a form of facility for the companies in the industrial estate, in Central Java.

"In the first phase we would build 1,000 units next year," Chief Executive of PT Jababeka (tbk) Setyono Djuandi Darmono said after attending the "Central Java Investment Business Forum" (CJIBF) at the Hotel Solo Paragon Solo, on Thursday.

PT Jababeka would look for investors to build the rest, Setyono said without giving figure for the total cost of the project.

He said the houses would be design as flat to save land, adding the design is widely used in advanced nations.

He said the construction of the houses near the Kendal Industrial Estate would benefit the companies in the industrial estate as well as the workers as they would be saved from paying transport cost.

"In addition the workers would be saved from wasting time on their way to work that they could be more productive, a benefit for the companies," he said.

So far progress in the development of KIK is encouraging, he said, adding 35 of 300 companies in the target, already invested in the industrial estate with a total investment of Rp6.2 trillion.

Jababeka has built 14 units of "standard factory" ready for use.

"We also plan to build 50 units of house shop and a golf course," he said.

Kendal Industrial Estate is an international industrial complex operated by PT Kawasan Industri Kendal (KIK) and developed by PT Jababeka Tbk and Sembcorp Development Ltd as a bilateral cooperation between Indonesia and Singapore.

It is located in Kendal district, Central Java, and was inaugurated in November 2016 by President Joko Widodo and the Prime Minister of Singapore, Lee Hsien Loong in Semarang, Central Java.

With a total area of 2.700 hectares, it is expected to provide up to 500.000 workers. Of the total land area, 860 hectares is plotted for infrastructure development consisting of power network, water treatment and waste management.

As an industry-based township, Kendal Industrial Estate supports manufacturers to raise their efficiency and productivity, and has impacts on improving local economy.