Government's power fast-track program delayed

The government's fast-track program to provide additional electricity supply of 10,000 MW in three years until 2009 will be delayed due to the rescheduling of some of the power plants to be built in Java.

Yogo Pratomo, the head of the construction of coal-fired plants under the fast-track program, said in Jakarta on Thursday that the operation of several coal-fired power projects with a capacity of between 600 and 700 MW to be built under the program in Java would be delayed for several months to February 2010 from August 2009 as initially scheduled.

The delay would also occur in the construction of a number of coal-fired power plants with a capacity of 300 and 400 MW to be built in Java. These power projects has been rescheduled to operate in August 2009 from June 2009 as initially planned.

Yogo said that these power projects could not be operated according to the original schedules because a delay in the tendering process and the signing of the contracts for the construction of PLTU Suralaya, PLTU Paiton, PLTU Tanjung Awar-Awar, PLTU Rembang, PLTU Indramayu and PLTU Labuhan.

"The contracts would be signed later this month, a month delay from the original schedule", he added.

Yogo said that the delay would affect state-owned electricity PLN's ability to meet the surge in the power demand in Java and Bali in 2008 and 2009. PLN should, therefore, be able to complete the upgrading projects of the company's existing combined-cycle fired power plants including PLTGU Muara Karang, PLTGU Tanjung Priok and PLTGU Muara Tawar in 2008 as originally scheduled, in order to be able to meet the target. (godang)