Govt to speed up power transmission project
Monday, August 22 2005 - 01:47 AM WIB
The government may use Presidential Instruction No. 36/2005 on compulsory land acquisition for public projects if it cannot reach an agreement with locals, Minister of Energy and Mineral Resources Purnomo Yusgiantoro said over the weekend.
“We’ll try to be persuasive . It’s better (to settle the problems) through dialog,” he said.
The instruction, issued in May, enables the state to forcibly take over private land that has been earmarked for development purposes, even when owners do not agree to the compensation offered.
“We’ll finish (the construction) in October,” said Purnomo.
The construction of the south transmission line is deemed crucial to support the north line as a back-up system.
Last week, a massive black-out hit much of Java for as long as 12 hours as a glitch in an interconnection system in the north line caused a chain reaction that shut down two major power plants on the island.
Meanwhile, regarding to the blackout, PLN said in a statement on Sunday, that only 457 customers in jakarta would be eligible to get a 10 percent reduction in nexth month's bill. The total amount of the bill cuts is estimated to be Rp. 3,5 miliion (US$350).
State power firm PT Perusahaan Listrik Negara (PLN) vice president of transmission and distribution Herman Darnel Ibrahim said there were six locations in Depok, West Java, as well as two in Bantul and one in Klaten, Central Java, where land owners opposed the planned line.
“Locals in Bantul requested Rp 100 billion (about US$10 million) in compensation to let the line pass through,” he said, adding that the amount was unreasonable.
PLN has delayed the completion date for the south line several times from last year due to land acquisition problems. It last named April next year as the completion date.
The south line is also crucial to ensure that supply from three planned power plants can be used optimally, said the general manager of the Java-Bali grid’s center for power distribution, Muljo Adji.
“The north line is limited in how much power it can transmit,” said Muljo
The additional power supply from the three new plants early next year cannot be used optimally without the south line, he said.
Coal-fired Tanjung Jati B power plant and Cilacap plant, both in Central Java, will have a capacity of 1,320 megawatts (MW) and 600 (MW)), respectively. Cilegon power plant in Banten will generate 720 MW of electricity.
Without additional supply to keep up with demand . which increases about 6 percent annually, power security in densely populated Java and Bali islands will be threatened.
The usable capacity in the Java-Bali grid hovers at 15,500 MW from the installed capacity of 19,615 MW. At present, power reserves at peak hours stand at about 600 MW.
PLN in July warned of a possible power shortage in October as demand increases on hotter days in the dry season, while capacities of hydro power plants lessen with reduced rainfall.
Power demand in the Java-Bali grid at peak times may reach 15,245 MW. As water levels in reservoirs decrease, hydropower capacities may drop by half, which means there will be only 120 MW in reserve. (*)