Inalum delays construction of power plant
Tuesday, July 26 2016 - 05:03 AM WIB
IDX-listed aluminum producer PT Indonesia Asahan Aluminium Tbk (Inalum) said that construction of a planned 2x350 MW coal-fired power plant in Kuala Tanjung, North Sumatra, is expected to be delayed to next year.
?Construction is expected to be delayed into early next year,? said Inalum President Director Winardi to Petromindo.com on Monday. The company initially planned to start construction this year. He said that feasibility study for the project has been completed, and that the company is now waiting for the final results. The next step would be holding tender to select contractor to build the project.
The power plant project is aimed at supporting the company?s plan to double production capacity to 500,000 tons per year of aluminum ingot by 2020.
Winardi, however, said that the company is also considering other cheaper source of energy. This includes the possibility of relocating the planned expansion project to North Kalimantan, which may offer cheaper source of electricity. If this can be realized, the company may triple production capacity from the current 250,000 tons per year.
Elsewhere, Winardi said that in the first semester of this year, production reached 130,000 tons out of full-year target of 250,000 tons. Winardi, however, was quoted by Kontan as saying that the full-year target may not be realized due to repair work at its Siguragura hydro power plant.
The paper said that in the first semester of this year, the company booked a net profit of US$41 million compare to full-year target of $60 million.
Editing by Reiner Simanjuntak