Prajogo Pangestu

Prajogo Pangestu, born Phang Djoen Phen (; born 13 May 1944), is an Indonesian billionaire, business magnate, investor, and philanthropist. He is the founder of the Indonesian conglomerate Barito Pacific Group, which engages in forestry, plantations, oil and gas, coal, gold mining, and geothermal energy. With a net worth of US$43.41 billion, he is the wealthiest person in Southeast Asia.

Early life

Pangestu was born on 13 May 1944, in Bengkayang, West Kalimantan, into a Hakka family from Guangdong, China. He attended Chinese schools in Indonesia and moved to Jakarta in 1965.

Business career

Prajogo's company PT Barito Pacific Timber Tbk was the largest listed company on the Jakarta Stock Exchange in 1993. In 2007, the company rebranded to reflect its diversified operations.

In addition to PT Barito Pacific Tbk, which manages Indonesia's largest petrochemical producer, PT Chandra Asri Pacific Tbk, he controls Barito Renewables, which owns Star Energy Geothermal, a leading geothermal company. Chandra Asri, Barito Renewables, and Star Energy are the core businesses of Barito Pacific.

In March 2022, it was announced that Green Era, a Singapore-based company controlled by Prajogo, acquired 33.33% of Star Energy from Thailand’s BCPG for $440 million, giving him full control of Star Energy.