Despite not having permission from the North Sumatra government, state power company PT PLN says it is ready to construct a new power plant that would solve the increasingly drastic power crisis in the province, an official says.
PLN's president Dahlan Iskan said Friday that the new hydro power plant - called PLTA Asahan III - was crucial to ending the power crisis.
"PLTA Asahan III is for North Sumatra, it's not possible *for the new plant* to provide electricity for Java or even Malaysia. Its electricity is for North Sumatra residents," he told reporters at Polonia Airport in Medan.
"If *the plant* were owned by a private company, its *electricity* could be sold it to anyone and anywhere."
North Sumatra Governor Syamsul Arifin has not issued a permit to PLN to build the new plant, which would produce 174 megawatts of electricity. The permit has been given to a private company.
"The decision was made by the previous governor," Syamsul said.
On March 19, 2008, then North Sumatra governor Rudolf Pardede issued a permit to build the plant to PT Bajradaya Sentranusa, which is currently constructing another power plant - PLTA Asahan I - in Toba Samosir regency, North Sumatra.
That permit reportedly will expire in three years, but the company has not begun construction on the number three plant.
On Tuesday, legislators at the House of Representatives ordered PLTA Asahan I to shut down pending the issuance of an environmental audit.
The audit is mandatory document for companies, including mining and plantation companies, which assess the environmental impacts of any business activities. The document is required before a business permit is issued.
Dahlan said that PLTA Asahan III could be completed faster if PLN took over construction.
He said that when finished the new plant would immediately solve the power crisis in North Sumatra.
He said that if the power plant was not built now, North Sumatra would suffer from another power crisis from 2013-2014.
PLN, he said, was ready to build PLTA Asahan III and had obtained a permit from Vice President Boediono. The design and a feasibility study have already been completed.
PLN has also obtained US$420 million in a soft loan from the Japan Bank for International Coorporation.
"I can guarantee that if we start construction on PLTA Asahan III today, it will be finished in three years," Dahlan said.
On Friday, PLN held a gathering attended by top officials and community leaders at the project's site in Aek Sonsongan district in Asahan regency, North Sumatra.
Syamsul said the administration supported PLN's plan to take over construction, especially considering that the province suffered regular power blackouts.
"Most important is that PLTA Asahan III benefits the people."
