New power plant for N. Sulawesi

JAKARTA (JP): PT Wahana Komunikatama will invest US$400 million in developing a 150 megawatt (MW) geothermal power plant in Tompaso, Minahasa, North Sulawesi.

"The geothermal power plant is scheduled to come on stream in 2003," said company president Kemal Idris Monday in the North Sulawesi's capital of Manado at a meeting with Governor E.E. Mangindaan.

Antara news service quoted Kemal as saying that Tompaso had a geothermal resources supply of 235 MW but the company would only generate 150 MW in the first phase.

He said state-owned electricity company PLN had permitted the company to exploit geothermal resources but Wahana and PLN had yet to conclude negotiations for power purchase agreements.

Mangindaan welcome the planned investment, saying the project would speed up the development of the province's industry and tourism.

The governor said the province had been in short supply of power over the past two years and he projected the province's demand for power to increase to 180 MW in 2000.

He said the province was developing some projects -- including the Sam Ratulangi airport, the Bitung seaport, a coconut processing factory, a cement factory and several star-rated hotels -- which would need a lot of power for operation.

The governor said some investors were developing a geothermal power plant in Lahendong with a generation capacity of 40 MW using French technology, but people were already pessimistic about the project because it was still under construction after many years.

Other investors were developing a coal-fired power plant with a generation capacity of 20 MW in Amurang, Minahasa, "Still the power plant alone won't be able to supply the province by 2000," Mangindaan said.

The government is promoting geothermal steam development as an alternative energy source because it is environmentally friendlier than other sources.

Official data say Indonesia has geothermal resources supplies of over 20,000 MW -- making it one of the biggest in the world -- but only 0.23 percent of this has been developed (jsk)