Reduction in state-led infrastructure projects pushes Waskita into bigger loss

A Waskita Karya office in Indonesia (Image: Nur Cholis via Wikimedia Commons)

Waskita took on a significant amount of debt to fund a government-led push to build more infrastructure in the wake of the Covid-19 pandemic but is now struggling to repay its debts.

The company normally relies on central government contracts for 65% of its total volume of work but since early 2025, when President Prabowo Subianto embarked on efficiency measures, that share is expected to fall to 55%.

Waskita’s president director Muhammad Hanugroho told a parliamentary hearing in Indonesia that the firm expected revenue this year of 10.8 trillion rupiah (US$661.8 million). The figure was slightly higher than the 10.6 trillion rupiah in 2024, coming both from existing and new contracts.

Noting that the company expected fewer contracts from the public works ministry this year, Muhammad said, “We need to find new markets or shift to new ministries to get new projects.”