14 people arrested over arson at Teluk Naga power project

Police have arrested 14 people suspected of torching a mess hall and vehicles owned by the contractor now building the 3x350 MW Teluk Naga coal fired power plant in Banten province.

"One of the suspects is the mastermind of the arson attack," Chief of the Tangerang District Police Adjunct Chief Commissioner Agus Andrianto was quoted by Antara news agency as saying on Saturday.

Meanwhile, Vice President Jusuf Kalla voiced his anger over the incident, saying it was a criminal act and thus a tough punishment should be meted out for the pepetrators.

The Jakarta Metropolitan Police has sent hundreds of anti-riot officers to guard the project.

Local residents assisted by thugs on Saturday burned down a camp owned by state electricity firm PT Perusahaan Listrik Negara (PLN), three heavy equipments, seven luxury cars owned by the contractors, causing 103 workers including expatriates, who were working to construct a power plant, to flee.

Police is investigating the reasons of the attack.

PLN is building the Teluk Naga power plant with the consortium of Chinese firm Dongfang Electric Corporation and Shandong Electric China as the contractor. It is part of the 10,000-MW power plant program the government is planning to build across the country.

Tempo reported on Monday that the two Chinese firms had decided to suspend their activities until PLN guarantees security for them. (godang)