Construction of Sarulla geothermal project will start August 2006

The government expects that construction of the 6x55-megawatt (MW) Sarulla geothermal power plant project in North Sumatra will start in August next year, a minister said Monday.

The first unit of the power plant was scheduled to start operation in March 2009, while the power plant was expected to run at full capacity of 295 MW by mid 2010, Minister of Energy and Mineral Resources Purnomo Yusgiantoro said in a meeting with the House of Representatives.

State-owned electricity firm PT PLN recently selected PT Geo Dipa Energi, a joint venture between PLN and state-owned oil and gas firm PT Pertamina, to develop the power plant.

Purnomo added that a letter of intent regarding the power plant project would be issued in the near future.

Elsewhere, Purnomo said the government targeted a total of 700 MW, including those from Sarulla, to be added to the nation's geothermal power capacity from now until 2015.

Indonesia's geothermal power plants now have a combined capacity of 804.3 MW, compared with a total of 27 GW in potentials, according to Purnomo. (dino)