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AKARTA: A sugar mill in Kediri, East Java, has taken the first step in Indonesia’s green energy development by signing a biomass power purchase agreement with state-owned energy firm PLN.

The Pesantren Baru sugar mill, operated by state-owned company PTPN X transforms its sugarcane waste into biomass-based power. It generates a total of 9 megawatts (MW), of which 6 MW are used to power the mill.

“We signed the power purchase agreement with PLN three days ago. It is the first sugar mill in Indonesia to sell power,” said PTPN X president director Subiyono as quoted by kompas.com on Saturday in Jakarta.

The purchased power, he further said, would be connected to PLN’s power grid. “The interconnecting infrastructure is being built and will be finished in September,” Subiyono said.

PTPN X is now preparing power production facilities at its other mills such as Ngadiredjo mill in Kediri and Gempolkerep mill in Mojokerto each with a capacity of 20 MW, and Tjoekir Jombang mill with a capacity of 10 MW. The three mills are all located in East Java.

“It is now impossible to depend on the sugar business to generate an adequate income because sugar is among the commodities subject to heavy government intervention,” he said. — JP