Jakarta – The Indonesian Chamber of Commerce and Industry (Kadin) – Kalimantan Regional Affairs received an audience with the Indonesian Stevedoring Companies Association (APBMI) at Menara Kadin Indonesia, Jakarta, on Wednesday (25/02/2026).

The meeting discussed regulatory issues concerning stevedoring activities in South Kalimantan, which are considered burdensome for businesses and potentially capable of increasing national logistics costs.

The audience was received directly by Kadin Indonesia Vice Chairman for Association/Extraordinary Members (ALB) Development Benny Soetrisno, together with Vice Chairman for Kalimantan Regional Affairs Andi Yuslim Patawari. The APBMI Central Executive Board delegation was led by Juswandi Kristanto.

Benny Soetrisno stated that Kadin had received reports regarding regulations in South Kalimantan that are viewed as contradictory and as creating additional cost consequences for stevedoring businesses.

“In the context of reducing logistics costs, policies such as this are clearly counterproductive. Our colleagues from APBMI have asked Kadin to facilitate and follow up on this issue so that it can be rectified,” Benny said.

Benny emphasized that Kadin will coordinate with the relevant ministries, namely the Ministry of Transportation, the Ministry of Cooperatives, and the Ministry of Manpower. Kadin will also summon the port authority to discuss and clarify the regulation in question to ensure legal certainty and alignment with prevailing laws and regulations.

Similarly, Vice Chairman for Kalimantan Regional Affairs Andi Yuslim Patawari stressed that APBMI is an Extraordinary Member (ALB) of Kadin Indonesia, and therefore the concerns conveyed are taken seriously by the organization.

“We will address this issue and seek the best solution. There should be no regulation that instead becomes a burden for businesses. If there are rules that contradict existing laws and regulations, they must certainly be revoked,” Andi asserted.

Andi added that Kadin Indonesia has the responsibility to provide assurance of business certainty to enterprises across various sectors, including the stevedoring sector, so that they can actively contribute to driving national economic growth.

“Kadin Indonesia must provide assurance to business actors so they can actively contribute to advancing the economy in any sector, including the stevedoring sector in Indonesia,” Andi explained.

Meanwhile, APBMI Chairman Juswandi Kristanto explained that the issue in South Kalimantan originated from the mandatory use of Stevedoring Workers (TKBM) for gearless vessels. According to him, gearless vessels that are already equipped with cranes do not require the deployment of TKBM in the loading and unloading process.

“The policy clearly increases operational costs and impacts the rise of national logistics costs. In addition, the circular letter forming the basis of this policy is considered inconsistent with prevailing regulations,” he said.

Juswandi added that APBMI requested Kadin Indonesia’s assistance in rectifying the policy to ensure the sustainability of stevedoring companies. APBMI also encouraged the presence of more than one TKBM cooperative at ports in order to create choice and healthy competition.

“We are not opposed to TKBM cooperatives. However, we hope there will be two or three cooperatives at the port so that there is a comparison of services and more competitive costs, so as not to burden businesses,” Juswandi concluded.

Through this audience, Kadin Indonesia reaffirmed its commitment to bridging dialogue between business actors and the government, and to ensuring that regulations continue to support logistics efficiency and a healthy business climate in the regions.

Also present at the meeting was Kadin Indonesia Vice Chairman for Membership Widiyanto Saputro.