Angkasa Pura to build power plant at Soetta airport

State owned port operator PT Angkasa Pura II (AP II) signed on Wednesday a cooperation agreement with state owned construction firm PT Wijaya Karya Tbk (Wika) and state owned gas distributor PT Perusahaan Gas Negara Tbk (PGN) to build and operate a gas turbine power plant (PLTG) at the Soekarno-Hatta (Soetta) international airport in Cengkareng.

The development of the power plant with a capacity of 50-60 MW is estimated to cost Rp 1 trillion.

The agreement was signed by AP II?s President Director Budi Karya Sumadi, Wika?s President Director Bintang Perbowo and PGN?s President Director Hendi Prio Santoso. The signing ceremony was witnessed by Pontas Tambunan, Deputy of Construction, Facilities and Infrastructure Business at the ministry of state enterprises.

The scope of work covered in the agreement includes mapping of power needs of the airport, utilization of gas from PGN for the power plant, feasibility study on financial, technical, commercial, legal aspects of the project.

The agreement envisages the establishment of a joint venture by the three SOEs with AP II having 51 percent interest.

?The agreement presents itself as a very good example of synergy between SOEs for the sake of public service. The development and operation of the power plant is part of our efforts to meet the power needs of Soekarano-Hatta international airport. We hope that once the power plant is completed, there will be no more cases of power blackout at the airport,? he said.

?Furthermore, the power demand of Soekarno-Hatta international airport is expected to increase significantly once the Terminal 3 Ultimate, the most sophisticated terminal in the country, has come into full operation. We need to make innovation to meet the power demand by ourselves,? Budi added.

By the time the power project is completed in 2017, the Soetta airport will be the first airport to have its own power plan in the country, he said.

Editing by Johannes Simbolon