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.