Govt to develop solar power plants in East Indonesia
Monday, March 18 2013 - 02:08 AM WIB
The Energy and Mineral Resources Ministry will develop solar power plants with a combined capacity of about 140 megawatt this year as part of the government?s program to reduce reliance on diesel power plants, Kontan reported on Monday.
Rida Mulyana, the director general of new and renewal energy, said in Jakarta last week that the development of the solar power plants would be mostly carried out in eastern part of Indonesia in cooperation with private companies.
He said that the private companies would operate as independent power producers (IPPs) which would sell the electricity from the solar power plants to state electricity company. ?Renewable energy including solar power plants will account for about 14 percent of electricity production this year,? he added.
He said that the ministry would cooperate with the local governments in the development of the solar power plans which is often hampered by land problems. (*)