New power plant to be built in North Sumatra
New power plant to be built in North Sumatra
Apriadi Gunawan, The Jakarta Post, Medan
PT Mega Power Mandiri, which is owned by Ahmad Kalla, a brother
of the country's new Vice President Jusuf Kalla, plans to develop
a US$250 million power plant in North Sumatra.
North Sumatra Governor T. Rizal Nurdin told reporters on
Wednesday the provincial administration had issued the necessary
license to the company for the development of the 219-megawatt
(MW) hydroelectric plant, which would span Bandar Pulau district
in Asahan regency and Meranti district in Samosir regency.
Rizal said Mega Power planned to start construction next year
and complete the plant by 2008.
"The investment value of the power plant is around $250
million, or about Rp 2 trillion," he said, adding that the new
PLTA Asahan III power plant would help secure the province's
electricity supply and avert the looming power crisis.
According to Maradjohan Batubara of state electricity firm
PLN's North Sumatra branch, the capacity of installed power
plants in the province totaled 1,050 MW, compared to peak-hour
demands of 1,030 MW from 6 p.m. to 10 p.m.
"This means that PLN has a leeway of only 20 MW. Ideally, the
power reserve should be from 200 MW to 400 MW," Maradjohan told
The Jakarta Post, pointing out that a small reserve supply would
be risky, particularly in the case of a power shutdown at one of
the plants, which could reduce the supply by up to 200 MW.
Indonesia faces the threat of a power crisis due to rising
demand against a limited supply due to lack of investment in the
sector. The new government has promised to work hard to lure new
investment to the country, including the crucial power sector.
Elsewhere, Rizal said the provincial administration hoped more
private investors would participate in developing the power
sector in the area, particularly in hydroelectric and geothermal
plant projects.
He pointed out that water resources in North Sumatra had the
potential to provide around 2,000 MW of electricity, while
geothermal resources could produce up to 1,300 MW.