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oordinating Economic Minister Hatta Rajasa inaugurated the coal-fired Indramayu West Java 1 power plant, which has a maximum capacity of 3x330 megawatts (MW), on Wednesday.

“This new power plant will play a very strategic role in supporting people’s lives as well as boosting the growth of the industrial sector. Around 45 percent of manufacturing industry is located in West Java; that’s why continuous power supply is extremely vital,” he said in his speech.

He added that according to state electricity firm PT PLN president director Dahlan Iskan’s report, in the Java-Bali network there were no longer supply shortages, so there was ample opportunity for Indonesia to optimize industrial growth by securing power supply.

“This power plant will also help PLN to curb its dependence on oil-based fuels which are expensive. It takes around Rp 2,000 [22 US cents] to produce 1 kilowatt hour [kWh] using oil-based fuels,” Hatta said.

PLN director for primary energy Nur Pamudi said that by using coal the cost of electricity production was reduced to Rp 340 per kWh.

The power plant is located on an 83-hectare site in Sumur Adem village in Sukrak district, Indramayu. It is one of the power plants in the first phase of the government’s 10,000 MW fast-track program.

Construction began in 2007, and was managed by a consortium of contractors: China National Machinery Industry Corporation, China National Electric Equipment Corporation and PT Penta Adi Samudera.

The total investment required to build the power plant reached US$696.73 million plus Rp 1.5 trillion.

These funds were provided by a consortium of the China Construction Bank, PLN and four local banks: Bank Negara Indonesia, Bank Mandiri, Bank Rakyat Indonesia and Bank Central Asia.

The Indramayu West Java 1 plant is expected to consume up to 4.2 million tons of coal per year. The coal will be supplied by PT Arutmin Indonesia, PT Kaltim Prima Coal (KPC), PT Bukit Asam, PLN Batubara and PT Kideco Jaya Agung.

The electricity produced by the plant will be fed to the Sukamandi and Kosambi power stations through a 150 kilovolt (kV) network.

The first and second units of the power plant began commercial operations on Jan. 29 and May 19, respectively. The third unit became operational after being officially inaugurated by Hatta on Wednesday.

With the completion of the Indramayu West Java 1 power plant, the Java-Bali grid’s total capacity has reached 21,000 MW with a daily peak load of only around 19,300 MW.

Dahlan said that the completion of the power plant prevented the Java-Bali system from losing supply due to reduced output from the Saguling and Cirata hydropower plants, also in West Java. The current dry season had caused the supply to drop by up to 800 MW, he added.

“If this power plant had not been completed, there would have been blackouts across the Java-Bali region,” he said.

In the first phase of the 10,000 MW fast-track program, the government aims to build power plants in 37 locations nationwide with a total capacity of 7,490 MW.