The Port of Tanjung Api-Api is a seaport in

Banyuasin Regency Banyuasin ( Musi: ) is a regency of South Sumatra Province in Indonesia. It takes its name from the main river which stream that area, Banyuasin River. Pangkalan Balai is the regency seat. The regency borders Musi Banyuasin Regency, Jambi province ...

South Sumatra South Sumatra ( id, Sumatra Selatan) is a province of Indonesia. It is located on the southeast of the island of Sumatra, The province spans and had a population of 8,467,432 at the 2020 Census. The capital of the province is Palembang. The pro ...

, Indonesia. Completed in 2007, it began passenger ferry operations to

Muntok Muntok () or, more commonly, Mentok is a town in the Indonesian province of Bangka-Belitung on the island of Sumatra. The capital of West Bangka Regency (''Bangka Barat''), it is the site of the biggest tin smelter on the world. Mentok refers to ...

in 2013, and cargo operations in 2019.

History

Historically, the city of

Palembang Palembang () is the capital city of the Indonesian province of South Sumatra. The city proper covers on both banks of the Musi River on the eastern lowland of southern Sumatra. It had a population of 1,668,848 at the 2020 Census. Palembang ...

served as the primary seaport for southern Sumatra, the

Musi River Musi may refer to: * Musi River (Indonesia) * Musi River (India), Telangana * Moosy River, Andhra Pradesh, India * Musi language, a Malay language spoken in Indonesia * Angelo Musi (1918–2009), American basketball player * Agostino de' Musi, real ...

being wide enough to accommodate oceangoing vessels. However, due to limited ship weights caused by sandbanks in the river, plans had been made to develop a replacement port at Tanjung Api-Api since the 1930s during the

Dutch East Indies The Dutch East Indies, also known as the Netherlands East Indies ( nl, Nederlands(ch)-Indië; ), was a Dutch colony consisting of what is now Indonesia. It was formed from the nationalised trading posts of the Dutch East India Company, which ...

era. After the provincial government of

also proposed the development of a port at Tanjung Api-Api in 2002, construction began in 2004 and was completed in 2007. In 2009

Syahrial Oesman Syahrial Oesman (born 25 May 1955) is an Indonesian politician currently of the Nasdem Party who served as the governor of South Sumatra between 2003 and 2008 and previously as regent of Ogan Komering Ulu Regency between 2000 and 2003. After his ...

, the governor during the construction period, was convicted of bribery related to the port's construction. He was found to have bribed several national legislators to ease the land acquisition process for the port. It was designed primarily as a passenger port to

Bangka Island Bangka is an island lying east of Sumatra, Indonesia. It is administered under the province of the Bangka Belitung Islands, being one of its namesakes alongside the smaller island of Belitung across the Gaspar Strait. The 9th largest island in In ...

to replace the existing ferry services in Palembang, with further plans to develop an industrial estate with railway connections. The port began passenger operations in late 2013. The port and 2,000 hectares of surrounding land was designated as a

special economic zone A special economic zone (SEZ) is an area in which the business and trade laws are different from the rest of the country. SEZs are located within a country's national borders, and their aims include increasing trade balance, employment, increas ...

in 2014. However, due to difficulties in land acquisition, the special status was revoked in 2022. It began cargo operations in 2019.

Services

Tanjung Api-Api is primarily served by

roll-on/roll-off Roll-on/roll-off (RORO or ro-ro) ships are cargo ships designed to carry wheeled cargo, such as cars, motorcycles, trucks, semi-trailer trucks, buses, trailers, and railroad cars, that are driven on and off the ship on their own wheels or using ...

ferries to the

Port of Tanjung Kalian The Port of Tanjung Kalian is a seaport located in the town of Muntok, in West Bangka Regency of the Bangka Belitung Islands, Indonesia. It serves as both a cargo port and a passenger ferry port, connecting the island of Bangka to Sumatra through ...

Bangka Belitung Islands The Bangka Belitung Islands ( id, Kepulauan Bangka Belitung) is a province of Indonesia. Situated off the southeastern coast of Sumatra, the province comprises two main landmasses— Bangka and Belitung—and numerous smaller islands. Bangka Beli ...

. Ferry services utilize a single pier, although a second pier is expected to become operational in late 2022. In the sixteen day period around the

Eid al-Fitr , nickname = Festival of Breaking the Fast, Lesser Eid, Sweet Eid, Sugar Feast , observedby = Muslims , type = Islamic , longtype = Islamic , significance = Commemoration to mark the end of fasting in Ramadan , dat ...

of 2022 alone, over 60,000 passengers crossed to Tanjung Api-Api from Muntok.

References

{{reflist Ports and harbours of Indonesia Transport in South Sumatra