Technology for coal gasification too expensive, PLN says
Technology for coal gasification too expensive, PLN says
Leony Aurora, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta
While coal gasification as an alternative technology for
producing electricity could reduce emissions and thus be more
environmentally friendly, the cost involved would have to fall in
order for it to be economically feasible.
State electricity firm PT PLN, which uses coal, as well as
oil, to fuel its power plants, said that the production of gas
from coal was currently too expensive.
In conventional coal-fired plants, it costs between Rp 120
(1 U.S. cents) and Rp 180 for coal to produce one kilowatt
hour of power, while the gasification process would nearly double
the cost, PLN director of power plants and primary energy
generation Ali Herman Ibrahim said on Friday.
"It depends on the prices offered. If it is cheaper, then we
would consider it," he Friday.
Ali was responding to questions about the use of alternative
forms of power-generation technology that could lower emissions.
GE Energy, a subsidiary of General Electric and one of the
major provider of equipment in the energy sector, for example, is
currently developing new, environmentally-friendly coal
gasification technology.
"It allows you to generate power just like with oil, but you
will have 50 percent less pollution," GE Energy President and CEO
John Rice said during a recent visit to the country to meet key
players in the power sector.
According to Rice, the technology was about 20 percent more
expensive than the cost of pulverized coal. However, as the firm
continued to develop the technology, within three years the cost
could be brought down to close to parity with straight coal
plants, he said.
"For a country like Indonesia that has very significant coal
reserves, (coal gasification) could be a way to have viable power
generation with emissions down," he said.
Indonesia is estimated to have some 57.8 billion tons in coal
reserves, of which 19.3 billion tons have been proven. With the
current annual rate of coal production of 130 million tons, the
country will continue to enjoy ample supplies of the fossil fuel
for the next 147 years.
In order to demonstrate the feasibility of coal gasification,
GE Energy would build two power plants using the technology in
the United States in the next three years, Rice said.
"As soon as these steps are taken, we'll be ready to expand it
more broadly, including in Indonesia," Rice said. A more detailed
description of the technology would be submitted to the
government, he added.
GE Energy is the second largest turbine supplier in Asia. It
is also the market leader in Indonesia, with more than 198
turbines installed, serving customers such as PT Indonesia Power
and the country's liquefied natural gas (LNG) producers, PT Badak
NGL and PT Arun.
The government, as part of its medium-term plan, aims to
construct and develop nine more coal-fired power plants by 2009
to safeguard domestic power supplies.
None of the power plants operating in the country at present
uses coal gasification technology.
However, Ali said that PLN was considering testing the
technology at the Umbilin mines in West Sumatra.