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PLN unit plans two large hydro power plants
Old stuff: Part of facilities at hydro power plant (PLTA) Bengkok in Bandung, West Java
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span class="inline inline-center">Old stuff: Part of facilities at hydro power plant (PLTA) Bengkok in Bandung, West Java. The hydro power plant has been in operation since 1923, during the Dutch colonial era. It is now operated by PT Indonesia Power, a subsidiary of state-owned electricity firm PT PLN. JP/Raras Cahyafitri
PT Indonesia Power, a subsidiary of state-owned electricity firm PT PLN, is preparing construction of several hydro power plants with a combined capacity of 500 megawatt (MW) to cope with the country's electricity supply shortage.
Indonesia Power director for business development Antonius Resep Tyas Artono said the hydro power plants included PLTA Maung in Central Java with a capacity of 360 MW, PLTA Rajamandala in West Java with 47 MW capacity and a number of smaller hydro power plants mostly located in Central Java.
'We are still reviewing our studies for the plants' development. The closest project to be built in PLTA Rajamandala is expected to kick off construction this year,' Antonius said on Friday.
He added that Indonesia Power expected to see a financial closing for its Rajamandala plant in the near future.
The Rajamandala plant is estimated to cost around US$150 million, according to Antonius.
Maung plant, the biggest project among other plants, will need around $500 million in investment, according to Antonius.
Total investment for the power plants, which will produce a combined power supply of about 500 MW, is estimated to reach $650 million.
'Investment will partly be financed by loans,' he said, adding that the Rajamandala plant would be completed within three years while other plants would be finished by 2019.
Currently, Indonesia Power operates eight hydro power plants with a combined capacity of 797.36 MW. The biggest unit is PLTA Saguling with a capacity of 700.72 MW and has been in operation since 1985. Other hydro power plants are PLTA Kracak, PLTA Ubrug, PLTA Plengan, PLTA Lamajan, PLTA Cikalong, PLTA Bengkok & Dago and PLTA P. Kondang.
The government has been promoting the use of renewable energy to produce electricity in an attempt to reduce the country's dependency on fossil fuels.
The country has total 47,128 MW of installed electricity generation capacity as of the end of 2013. Most of the electricity is produced by diesel and coal fired power plants. Only around 8 percent of the total capacity is generated by hydro power plants.
The government said recently that it aimed to accelerate the development of a number of PLTA projects in the country, including PLTA Karangkates IV & V, PLTA Kesamben and PLTA Lodoyo. The three plants have a combined capacity of 146.52 MW.
