Batam invites investor to build electricity infrastructure

The shortage of the electricity supply has caused a delay in a number of housing projects in Riau Islands Province which includes Batam and several nearby islands such as Natuna, Karimun and Lingga islands, according to the Association of the Indonesian Real Estate Developers (REI).

"About 3,000 houses in Tanjung Pinang could no be sold due to the lack of electricity supply. Many property projects have also been delayed due the same reason," said the head of the association's chapter in Batam, Eddy Hussein.

Eddy therefore called on local and foreign investors to build new electricity plants and transmission facilities to help cope the problem.

He said that investing in both in power generation plants and transmission facilities in the islands would be quite promising given the good prospects of these islands.

According to him, the electricity generation capacity in the islands, formerly part of Riau province, is about 65.33 MW. However, since many of the existing power plants could no longer operate normally, the actual power supply is far from enough to meet the demand. (*)