As part of its efforts to generate electricity from renewable energy, the government will upgrade a solar cell power plant in Bandung to expand its capacity to 50 megawatts.
Coordinating Economic Minister Hatta Radjasa said Friday the government had approved the plan and was now studying the best financing scheme for the project.
“There are still two options with this project. First, we use an old technology, the one made from silicon, which is cheap in investment terms but somewhat expensive in its operational costs.
“The second option is using the newest microfilm technology which costs more in investment terms but is cheaper to maintain and easier to operate,” Hatta said.
The government had so far tended to choose the former option, he said, because it would cost only about Rp 50 billion (US$ 5.3 million).
“We are still waiting for the final comprehensive review from the research and technology ministry before concluding which option is the best, both economically and operationally,” he said.
The project will be awarded to state-owned solar cell producer PT LEN Industri.
Hatta said the government expected the company to finance the project itself using internal funds or seeking other investment. “We are not going to use the state budget to finance the project because it is commercially feasible and attractive to investors,” he said. (bbs)
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