Exploring the Motives for Transforming the “Nanggung” BUMN Karya into Agrinas

The government is in the process of transforming three state-owned enterprises, PT Virama Karya (Persero), PT Yodya Karya (Persero), and PT Indra Karya (Persero), into state-owned enterprises focused on food, plantations, and fisheries under the name Agro Industri Nasional or Agrinas.

Each name of the state-owned enterprise (BUMN) will be changed to PT Agrinas Jaladri Nusantara (Persero), PT Agrinas Pangan Nusantara (Persero), and PT Agrinas Palma Nusantara (Persero).

From the portfolio listed on the company's official website, Virama Karya previously specialized in providing project management services for roads and bridges. The company also engages in consulting services for the energy industry, transportation, housing, water resources, as well as buildings and structures.

Meanwhile, Yodya Karya is engaged in engineering consulting services, project management and business development that adheres to the philosophy of providing the best service to clients and producing superior works through strong performance in order to realize the vision of becoming a reliable engineering consultant.

Based on the company's management report letter for the second quarter of 2024, Indra Karya is a consulting company that has three main service business lines integrated in the upstream to downstream sectors of water resources and non-water resources, namely engineering consultants, developers, and industry.

News of the business transformation of the three state-owned construction enterprises emerged at the end of 2024. In a letter dated November 11, 2024, the Minister of State-Owned Enterprises, Erick Thohir, conveyed plans to transform several non-food state-owned enterprises into food-focused state-owned enterprises to support the implementation of President Prabowo Subianto's priority programs.

To Kompas, SOE Minister Erick Thohir at that time confirmed that the transformation was his institution's step to support the government's food self-sufficiency program. SOE business units that have so far focused on the work sector will consolidate to work on other assignments related to the food sector.

Based on Government Regulation (PP) Number 1 of 2025, Virama Karya will transform under a new name, Agrinas Jaladri Nusantara, to engage in fish or shrimp farming business. Ongoing consultancy business contracts will be transferred to one of the subsidiaries of the state-owned enterprise in the construction sector.

Meanwhile, based on Government Regulation No. 2/2025, Yodya Karya will be renamed Agrinas Pangan Nusantara to focus on business in the agricultural sector, including agricultural product processing industries, land provision for agriculture, land management, irrigation network provision, agricultural product trade, as well as the trade of agricultural machinery and equipment.

According to Government Regulation No. 3/2025, Indra Karya, which has been renamed Agrinas Palma Nusantara, will focus on two main business lines, namely the palm oil plantation processing sector and construction consulting services.

The company is <strong>“</strong>responsible”

Judging from the financial reports of the three companies when they were still operating in the construction sector, the financial performance of the three companies was good, but not too special. The three companies still made an average net profit every year of one to two digits of billions of rupiah. The assets of the three companies also reached hundreds of billions of rupiah each.

However, in order to consolidate the work on state assignments to achieve the food self-sufficiency target, the government certainly sees that the liquidity currently available is still inadequate and cannot yet cover the running of the program.

In the press conference for the March 2025 Edition of Our State Budget in Jakarta, Thursday (13/3/2025), Deputy Minister of Finance Thomas Djiwandono revealed that the Ministry of Finance has prepared state capital participation (PMN) for the three Agrinas BUMNs.

<strong>”</strong>The additional PMN will be used for, among other things, aquaculture and capture fisheries activities, management of Food Production Center Areas (KSPP), land revitalization, and plantation management,” said Thomas.

On a different occasion, Finance Minister Sri Mulyani Indrawati emphasized that the government's plan to include PMN for BUMN Agrinas has been included in the 2025 State Budget. The total amount of PMN for the three Agrinas reaches IDR 8 trillion.

He also denied the narrative that said that the capital injection into Agrinas was a new budget that was suddenly created.

<strong>"</strong>Because Agrinas is a new BUMN (transformed), so the process now is that Agrinas by the Ministry of BUMN will submit to the DPR so that the PMN process can be implemented," said Sri Mulyani in a press conference in Jakarta, Wednesday (19/3/2025).

Head of the Public Relations Sub-Directorate of the Directorate General of State Assets of the Ministry of Finance, Adi Wibowo, said that the plan to provide PMN for the three BUMNs had begun to be discussed since the PP on changes to the three businesses was issued at the beginning of this year.

<strong>”</strong>PMN was discussed to ensure optimal support in the transformation of the three BUMNs,” he said.

Utilization of PMN

Contacted on Monday (3/24/2025), Agrinas Jaladri Nusantara Corporate Secretary Adityo Ramadhan said that until now the company is still reviewing what programs will be carried out with PMN funds. They conducted the review together with the Ministry of SOEs and the Ministry of Maritime Affairs and Fisheries.

Several programs to support food self-sufficiency in the marine and fisheries sector include fish or shrimp farming programs and measured fishing. <strong>"</strong>We are still conducting a feasibility study to determine the most efficient and impactful (programs)," he said.

Meanwhile, until this news was published, Agrinas Pangan Nusantara management had not responded to Kompas' questions regarding the work program they would carry out by utilizing PMN to support the government's food self-sufficiency target.

Agrinas Palma Nusantara President Director Lieutenant General TNI (Ret.) Agus Sutomo, at the Danareksa Tower, Jakarta, Monday (10/3/2025), explained that they will work on managing oil palm plantations with the Indonesia Sustainable Palm Oil policy.

On the assets they now manage, they will turn 17,000 hectares of land into one regional area. Each regional area is guided by a regional head who oversees five general managers, 25 managers, 125 manager staff, with many other employees, down to the farmer level.

"We will prioritize our personnel by recruiting local residents, especially employees from Duta Palma, who we have approached to join. We will not terminate their jobs (Duta Palma employees), even the rights that should be the responsibility of the old company will be 100 percent given," he said.

However, it is hoped that the state assignment that the government will give to the three Agrinas BUMNs will not result in duplication of activities with other mature state-owned companies operating in the food, plantation and fisheries sectors.

As long as the government has a mature plan, the presence of the three food companies should not disrupt the restructuring trend carried out by the Ministry of SOEs, which usually often unites corporate entities with similar business lines.