Jakarta - Indonesian state passenger ship company, PELNI, has agreed to modify two of its ships for meetings on board. The ships will sail around Sulawesi.

The move is part of the Association of Indonesian Travel Agents (ASITA) South Sulawesi’s initiative to entice corporate meetings and incentives to Sulawesi. PELNI, on the other hand, wants to find new markets. The growth of domestic airline services has absorbed a significant number of sea-transportation passengers.

ASITA South Sulawesi chairman, Mr Nico Pasaka, said: “We have been trying to develop the corporate meeting market, especially to South Sulawesi, for quite sometime. We expect that meetings onboard a ship which cruises around the Sulawesi waters will entice companies not only around Sulawesi but also from Jakarta.”

“Part of the ship will be redesigned to have 360 (deluxe) cabins with a meeting hall with a capacity for up to 300 people. Five regional governments in Sulawesi have agreed to finance the renovation while the trade will sell the product to get the business.

Marketing will start soon and packages are expected to be launched in the second half of this year. The plan is to have 40 per cent individual passengers and 60 per cent corporate meeting and incentive passengers.