wiredInUSA November 2019

Indonesians urged to use Internet with respect

Tire cord in Thailand

Image: Xingda

Chinese steel cord maker Jiangsu Xingda Steel Cord Ltd Co has initiated production at its first overseas plant, in Chonburi (Thailand). Xingda Steel Cord’s general manager, Mr Liu Xiang, said: “Establishing Xingda Steel Cord (Thailand) Co Ltd is integral to our strategy of globalization and proves our commitment to better serve…the global steel cord market.” He stressed that Xingda has plans to expand internationally, adding that building and operating the Thailand plant “Will enable us to gain…experience of running a factory in another country, and this will pave the way for our further global expansion.” With an annual capacity of 100,000 metric tons, the Thai plant will produce steel cord products for the tires of passenger cars and commercial trucks and buses, providing fast and flexible delivery to tire makers in Thailand and south and southeast Asia.

Indonesia has completed the final stretch of a 13,000km (8,080 mile) optic fiber network that will bring high-speed Internet to some of its poorest regions. The final leg, called the East Palapa Ring project, consists of a 6,878km cable connecting Papua, some islands in the Maluku region and East Nusa Tenggara. The overland and undersea telecommunication cable is said to have cost around $540.18 million to build. The President of Indonesia, Joko Widodo, said the project should provide “a sense of justice” for Indonesians in the eastern part of the country, who will now be able to access the Internet with the same speed as others in Indonesia. The government completed the West Palapa Ring project, covering the western half of the country, in March 2018, while construction for similar infrastructure in the center of Indonesia was finished earlier this year. The president went on to urge Indonesians not to use the Internet to spread fake news and hate speech. Papua, which encompasses Indonesia’s two easternmost provinces, has seen an upsurge in protests and unrest, prompting the government to temporarily curb Internet use in response.

wiredInUSA November 2019

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