Indonesia Power to develop power plants

Indonesia Power to develop power plants

Moch. N. Kurniawan, The Jakarta Post, Nusa Dua, Bali

Indonesia Power, a subsidiary of state-owned electricity
company PLN, said on Sunday it planed to develop a combined 991
megawatt (MW) power plant projects in Java and Bali and a 1,223
MW project outside Java-Bali.

Indonesia Power president Firdaus Akmal said the projects
would help avoid a power crisis in the future.

"We're trying to meet the increasing power demand in the
country," he said at the third Indonesian International Oil, Gas
and Energy Conference (IIOGE) in Nusa Dua, Bali.

According to him, the power projects in Java and Bali would
cost about US$658 million, the remaining projects outside Java-
Bali would cost $977 million.

"We're ready to seek a partnership," said Firdaus, adding that
Japan Bank for International Corporation (JBIC) could be
interested.

He said the Java-Bali power project plans include the 183 MW
Pemeron gas-fired power plant in Bali (to start next year), 30 MW
Gunung Salak power plant (2005), and the 715 MW gas-fired Tanjung
Priok plant (2006).

The power plant projects in other provinces, he said, include
a 400 MW power plant in South Sumatra (2005-2006), a 500 MW plant
in West Sumatra and Riau (2007), and a 114 MW plant in Kalimantan
(2003-2005).

Java and Bali is facing an imminent power shortage in 2004 if
it fails to build new generating units.

The other 28 areas outside Java Bali are also in critical
condition, with several areas in Sumatra have already suffering
blackouts.

The government has also reached new power purchase deals with
several of the 27 independent power producers (IPPs), whose power
plant projects were halted in the wake of the 1997 economic
crisis, allowing the projects to be resumed.

One of the power plants to be recommenced soon is the 1,320 MW
Tanjung Jati B power plant in Central Java, which can help delay
the occurrence of a power crisis in Java and Bali if the project
can be completed by 2005.