Prajogo Pangestu

Prajogo Pangestu, born Phang Djoen Phen (Chinese: 彭雲鵬; Pe̍h-ōe-jī: Phênn Hûn Phîng; born in 13 May 1944) is an Indonesian billionare, business magnate, investor, and philanthropist who is the founder Indonesian conglomerate Barito Pacific Group, which engages in forestry, plantation, oil and gas, coal and gold mining, as well as geothermal. With a net worth of US$43.4 billion, he is the wealthiest person in South East Asia.^[1]

Pangestu was born on 13 May 1944, in Bengkayang, West Kalimantan, to a Hakka family from Guangdong, China. He attended Chinese schools in Indonesia and moved to Jakarta in 1965.^[2] In 1970, Pangestu joined Burhan Uray's timber company Djajanti Group and was appointed by Uray as general manager of PT Nusantara in 1976. He left Djajanti in 1977 and launched his own business.^[2]

One of the companies controlled by Prajogo, PT Barito Pacific Timber Tbk, as of 1993 was the largest company on the Jakarta Stock Exchange.^[3] In 2007, the company dropped the word "Timber" to reflect the diversified scope of its businesses.

Aside from PT Barito Pacific Tbk which controls Indonesia's largest petrochemical producer, PT Chandra Asri Pacific Tbk, Prajogo Pangestu also controls Barito Renewables, a holding company that fully owns Star Energy Geothermal, one of the largest geothermal companies in the world. Chandra Asri, Barito Renewables and Star Energy remain as the two main business subsidiaries of Barito Pacific.^[4]

In March 2022, it was announced that Green Era, a private Singapore-based company controlled by Pangestu, purchased 33.33% of Star Energy from Thailand’s BCPG for $440 million. Pangestu already owned 66.6% of Jakarta-headquartered Star Energy, and the recent purchase gives Pangestu full control of Star Energy. ^[5]