PLN to operate two new subsidiaries

PLN to operate two new subsidiaries

JAKARTA (JP): The Minister of Finance has approved the
establishment of two subsidiaries by state-owned electricity
company PT Perusahaan Listrik Negara (PLN), which will control
power generation facilities in Java and Bali, an executive said.

"We received the licenses last week of PT Pembangkitan I and
PT Pembangkitan II, which expect to start operation within the
next six months," the company's president, Djiteng Marsudi, was
quoted by Antara as saying on Wednesday.

The capital and legal aspects of the planned subsidiaries are
now being prepared, he said.

Djiteng explained that Pembangkitan I will be responsible for
the operation of PLN's power plants in West and Central Java,
while Pembangkitan II will control the operation of power
stations in East Java and Bali.

The two subsidiaries will reportedly be managed efficiently in
order to compete with two private electricity companies which
will operate power generation units in Paiton, East Java. They
will have a combined capacity of 2,400 megawatts.

According to Director General of Electricity and Energy
Development Zuhal, a former president of PLN, four foreign power
corporations have applied for partnership in the planned
subsidiaries. The four firms are National Power Corp. from
Britain, EDF Power Corp. from France and two unnamed American
firms.

PLN, now operating power plants with a total capacity of
12,000 megawatts and maintaining a 11,000-kilometer transmission
network, plans to build more plants to increase its capacity by
13,000 megawatts in the next five years. (04)