The Indonesian government is intensifying efforts to develop the national maritime industry through strategic collaboration with Russia. This step was formalized through a forum titled Building an Indonesia–Russia Shipbuilding Partnership held at INNOPROM 2026 in Yekaterinburg, Russia.
This forum brought together shipyard and component industry players from both countries to discuss investment opportunities, technology transfer, and human resources development. The initiative is a concrete follow-up to the memorandum of understanding (MoU) agreed upon in December 2025.
Indonesian Minister of Industry, Agus Gumiwang Kartasasmita, emphasized that this cooperation is viewed as a crucial step toward enhancing the competitiveness of the domestic shipbuilding industry. As an archipelagic nation with thousands of islands, Indonesia has an urgent need for reliable vessels to support logistics, fisheries, and inter-island transportation.
On the other hand, Russia is considered an ideal partner due to its long track record in commercial vessel design, propulsion system technology, and marine engineering. The synergy between Indonesia's large market and Russia's technological advantages is expected to create a complementary industrial ecosystem.
This partnership is projected to become increasingly dynamic with support from the Indonesia–Eurasian Economic Union Free Trade Agreement (I-EAEU FTA). Through the forum, both sides are exploring joint production potential ranging from passenger ships, logistics vessels, to patrol boats, while continuing to foster the competence of local maritime workers to compete in the ASEAN arena.
