GE signs RI infrastructure projects worth over $1b

By Ruli Setiawan

US firm GE announced Monday the signing of four infrastructure projects valued at over US$1 billion in the presence of Indonesian President Joko Widodo during his state visit to the United States.

GE said in a statement that three of the projects will be in the power sector and contribute an estimated 3 GW in capacity towards the country?s plan to provide more than 35 GW of additional power by 2019. The fourth project will provide maintenance services for 50 locomotives in state-owned railway operator PT Kereta Api Indonesia?s (PT KAI) rail fleet.

GE said that PT PLN Batam, a subsidiary of state-owned electricity provider, PT Perusahaan Listrik Negara (PT PLN), has selected GE?s aeroderivative gas turbine technology for a 500 MW fast power project. The 20 TM2500 gas turbines with engine cores manufactured in Cincinnati, Ohio, will meet Indonesia?s need for quick installation, efficiency, reliability and flexibility. The units are truck-mounted, run on dual-fuel and fully re-deployable.

GE is currently installing four similar units in Gorontalo, North Sulawesi. These units will quickly provide 100 MW of power generation capacity, the equivalent power needed to supply approximately 800,000 Indonesian homes.

GE said it also signed two joint cooperation agreements to evaluate the feasibility of developing and investing in power projects using combined cycle technology: the first, with PT Indonesia Power, a subsidiary of PT PLN, for a minimum power target of 500 MW, and the second, with independent power producer PT Cikarang Listrindo, for a minimum target of 1,000 MW.

In addition to these power generation projects, GE and PT KAI signed a Letter of Intent for a multi-year maintenance service agreement for 50 CC206 diesel-electric locomotives, the latest addition to PT KAI?s fleet of existing diesel-electric locomotives. GE has worked with PT KAI for more than 60 years, bringing 350 locomotives to the country.

Editing by Reiner Simanjuntak