Wavin, a plastic pipe manufacturing company from the Netherlands, has put Rp825 billion (US$52.6 million) investment in Indonesia to establish a production facility in the Batang Integrated Industrial Estate, Central Java, making it the country’s first production facility in the Southeast Asia Region.
Founded in 1955, Wavin B.V is a Dutch plastic pipe manufacturer for drainage and water supply. The company produces plastic pipes for tap water, surface heating and cooling, ground and waste, rainwater, drinking water and gas distribution and telecommunications applications. The company also operates in 25 European countries and has networks in Asia, Australia, Africa, Latin America, the Middle East and North America. In 2012, Wavin was acquired by Orbia.
Minister of Investment/Head of the Investment Coordinating Board (BKPM), Rosan P. Roeslani, said that the factory established by PT Wavin Manufacturing Indonesia will absorb 170 workers with its output earmarked for the export market.
“We hope this investment will be an initial investment because Orbia has other business lines besides plastic pipes,” Rosan said on October 3, 2024.
Wavin had been in the Indonesian market for 35 years, but it still imported pipes from abroad since its entry. Currently, Orbia has a market value of around US$8 billion (Rp122.4 trillion).
Wavin will not absorb many employees because it is a high-tech manufacturing company that reduces the use of human workers.
Johannes Drees, Managing Director at Wavin Indonesia and Southeast Asia plans to target the regional market in the near future, especially the Singapore and Malaysia markets. Drees also plans to increase the absorption of workers at Wavin Manufacturing in the near future.
“Our group continues to grow in Indonesia. I think we will have a workforce of more than 200 people in this factory,” he said as quoted by Katadata.co.id on October 3, 2024.
Wavin Manufacturing is currently equipped with the best and latest production technology in the world. The pipes produced are intended to channel drinking water.
Bahlil Lahadalia, then Minister of Investment, noted that Wavin’s investment has the potential to absorb 500 local workers. This investment is the result of his efforts in establishing an approach with Wavin while visiting the Netherlands.
Bahlil said that 80 percent of pipe products used in Indonesia still come from imports. The construction of the Wavin BV factory can substitute the need for Indonesian pipe imports.
