According to The Jakarta Globe, funding for the undertaking will come entirely from private sources, with Panghegar and CNMIE expected to provide 30% of the finance through equity and the remainder from bank loans.

The two companies signed an MOU for the project in October 2013 during the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) summit in Bali. Their joint masterplan outlines a network consisting of a 29.7km line from Leuwi Panjang bus terminal to Tanjungsari; a 13.3km line from Leuwi Panjang to Soreang; an 18.6km line from Leuwi Panajang to the Ngamprah subdistrict; a 10.2km line along the Sungai Cikapundung artery; and a 12km line from the Gedebage station to the Majalaya subdistrict.

Mr Cecep Rukmana Ruhyat, the patriarch of Panghegar, a hotel business which is transforming itself into a property developer, says despite the regional government pushing for an August groundbreaking, the project remains in the feasibility stage.

He added that the monorail is part of a larger plan for development of Bandung, a city suffering from chronic traffic congestion. At the heart of the plan is the construction of six satellite cities on the outskirts which would all be connected to the monorail.

"A monorail is a loss making project," Cecep says. "It should be developed by the government, but the government doesn't have any money and if it is subsidised it is also too costly. The solution is to involve the private sector and compensate for its losses with property projects that will be connected to the monorail."

• Indonesia's Transport Ministry says that it plans to reopen 100km of railway across Java this year, beginning with a 50km section between Kedung Jati and Ambarawa in Central Java. There is reportedly Rupiah 150-200bn available for this project.

For an in-depth look at Indonesia's railway development plans, including urban rail infrastructure, see the February 2014 issue of IRJ.