Pauwels Trafo Asia to make transformers

BOGOR (JP): Power transformer manufacturer Pauwels Trafo Asia plans to produce high-voltage 500 kilovolt (kV) power transformers to benefit from the growing electricity market in Indonesia and other Southeast Asian countries.

"Once the plan is realized we shall be the only one, not only in Indonesia but also in Asia, to produce such large equipment," company president commissioner Arifin Panigoro said yesterday during a visit by Belgium's Vice Prime Minister Philippe Maystadt to the company's production facilities in Cileungsi, Bogor.

Maystadt was accompanied by State Minister of National Development Planning Ginandjar Kartasasmita.

Arifin said 500 kV transformers were used to transmit power from a power plant to substations through long distance power grids. The higher the voltage of a transformer, the less power lost during transmission.

"The use of 500 kV transformers will reduce power losses during power transmission through long-distance power networks such as the Java-Bali power grid," Arifin said.

He said state-owned electricity company PLN had so far imported such equipment from Austria, France and Germany.

In line with the plan, Pauwels Trafo Asia will send its workers to Pauwels' production facilities in Canada for two years of training in the making of the 500kV transformers, added Arifin.

Pauwels Trafo Asia is 60 percent owned by Belgium's Pauwels International NV and 40 percent by PT Meta Epsi Engineering. Meta Epsi is the subsidiary of the Medco Group.

The company currently produces 10-125 MVA/up to 150 kV transformers with a production capacity of 3,000 MVA a year or 80 units a year.

Company director Syahril Anwar said the company sold 60 percent of its products on the domestic market and exported the rest to Southeast Asian countries.

Pauwels Group's commissioner Vic Pauwels said yesterday that Pauwels felt comfortable investing in Indonesia, but he noted that the company was facing tough competition from imported built-up transformers on the local market due to the high import duties it paid on imported raw materials.

He said the company imported about 40 percent to 50 percent of its raw materials and paid import duties of between 10 percent to 20 percent, as against the 5 percent import duty imposed on built-up transformers.

"I hope that import duty will be reduced very soon," Pauwels said.

Sjahril added that aside from import duty, the 10 percent value-added tax also made their products more expensive than imported transformers, which are exempted from value-added tax.

"Thus, we have to reduce our price by 10 percent in order to compete with (sellers of) imported transformers," said Syahril. (jsk)