Indonesian Filament and Fiber Producers Association (APSyFI) and the Indonesian Textile Association (API) have requested the government for relaxation policies. One of the requests includes penalty fee waivers from state electricity company PLN and state gas company PT PGN for textile companies with electricity and gas consumption below the minimum threshold.
The associations also complained about the financial sector not providing credit relaxations to textile companies, even though the Financial Services Authority (OJK) has issued regulation No.11/2020 on credit restructuring for companies impacted by the pandemic.
They say around 70 per cent of textile and textile product (TPT) companies in Indonesia face permanent closure due to plunging domestic and export demand. At the moment, 80 per cent textile companies in the country have halted operations temporarily while facing cashflow issues, so financial support from the government is urgently required.
The association warned that massive business closures could cause a spike in unemployment, as around 1.8 million TPT industry workers are already furloughed or laid off because of the pandemic.