Bali Pemaron Power Plant starts amid controversy
Rita A. Widiadana, Lovina, North Bali
Construction of the controversial US$51 million Pemaron power plant, located in the middle of the Lovina tourist and residential area in North Bali, began on Friday, ending a two- year delay amid protests from environmentalists.
PT Indonesia Power, a unit of state electricity company PT PLN, is building the 146-megawatt (MW) gas and steam powered plant in Buleleng regency in the village of Kalibukbuk, about 100 kilometers north of Bali's capital, Denpasar.
Groups from both opposing and supporting camps watched from outside the ground-breaking ceremony led by Buleleng Regent I Putu Bagiada on Friday.
"It has been decided by the government. We have to provide legal certainty to investors; otherwise no company would invest in Buleleng," Bagiada said.
Construction was delayed for two years due to protests from various community groups in the regency. They argued that the power plant would pollute the environment and thus undermine Lovina's attractiveness as a tourist area.
However, backers of the project said that Bali was in dire need of a new power plant, saying that demands for electricity on the island would soon outstrip PLN's capacity to supply power from Java.
Business development manager at Indonesia Power, Edi Sulistyo, said Bali was facing an energy crisis, and that the power plant must be built now.
Bali receives its power from power plants in Java through the Java-Bali transmission grid, which connects the two islands via giant underwater cables.
According to PLN, the Pemaron power plant can generate enough electricity to meet the rising demand.
"If everything goes smoothly, the power plant will be completed within one year," Edi said.
But the construction of the power plant could prove costly to the environment.
It is believed the project will pollute Lovina Beach, as the power plant will need around 700 tons of diesel fuel every two weeks for its operation.
The diesel will be delivered by tankers through a pipeline installed at Lovina Beach, now a favorite diving and snorkeling site.
The risks of leaks and oil spills could not just spell a major environmental disaster, but also damage the island's tourism industry. It has yet to recover from the Oct. 12 bombings, which killed at least 202 people, mainly foreign tourists last year.
Gede Wisnaya, chairman of the Bali Development Study and Empowerment, said that he was extremely disappointed. "We have been protesting since 2001, and have also written a letter to President Megawati Soekarnoputri and the Minister of Environment, but no one has responded."
Edi argued the power plant posed only a small environmental risk, citing an environmental impact study on the project carried out by his company, which revealed very low environmental risks.
"We have calculated the risks and affirm that there will be no major environmental degradation," he professed.