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A$2 billion preliminary agreement signed in early June between state ferry operator PT Indonesia Ferry and two Korean companies for the purchase of more than 1,000 ferries appears to be have been nothing more than wishful thinking, or part of a process of “soundings” between the companies, two senior government officials said on Wednesday.

The deal “was only at the discussion stage,” said Hari Susetyo, the deputy for transportation logistics and tourism at the State Ministry for State Enterprises. “It has not been followed through.”

Even if Indonesia Ferry still wanted to press ahead with the deal, it would require further study by the ministry, Hari said, adding that there was “a long way to go” before a definitive agreement could be concluded, and that one was unlikely this year.

Contradicting Indonesia Ferry executives, Hari insisted that the ministry had never received any proposal from the company about the deal after the preliminary agreement was signed on June 1 by Indonesia Ferry, Samsung C&T —South Korea’s second-largest shipbuilder — and Korean firm 21st Century on Jeju Island, South Korea.

The deal was signed by the three parties on the sidelines of an Asean-Korea forum in order to improve Indonesia’s maritime transport infrastructure, according to Samsung.

Indonesia Ferry claimed this month that the ministry had already received the proposal as was studying it.

“I have not received anything from them,” Hari added.

The preliminary agreement appears to have been signed without the knowledge of the State Enterprises Ministry, with the minister who must approve it, Sofyan Djalil, saying in June that he only knew about it from media reports.

“The deal is nothing more than a memorandum of understanding or the expression of an aspiration. There have been no further developments since then,” Sofyan said on Tuesday, adding that many such MoUs signed by SOEs turned out to be nothing more than wishful thinking. “However, [the deal] was still a good idea, though,” he added.

Bambang Surjanto, Indonesia Ferry’s president director, failed to respond to the Jakarta Globe’s requests for comment.

Reuters, citing an unnamed source, reported that the two Korean companies would help Indonesia Ferry construct a shipyard and build some 1,000 ferries over the next five years, with the deal reported to be worth up to $2 billion.

President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono and other high-level officials attended the Asean meeting in June but are not believed to have been present at the signing.

Muhammad Said Didu, the State Enterprises Ministry’s secretary, said it was “impossible” for the small company to afford to buy 1,000 ferries without significant help, even if the purchases were made over a five-year period.

“It’s far too many ferries for them,” Didu said.

In 2007, Indonesia Ferry’s assets stood at Rp 1.1 trillion, and it posted revenue of Rp 625 billion. The company currently operates 98 passenger ferries.