Indonesia?s hydropower potential reaches 75,000 MW

Indonesia?s hydropower generation potential reaches about 75,000 MW but only about 3,015 MW of the potential could be exploited, according to state owned electricity company PLN.

PLN?s president director Eddie Widiono said in Jakarta on Monday that the state-electricity still lacked of funding to take the advantage of the country?s hydropower potential as such projects mostly required a lot of investment.

?The development of hydropower plants in the country is still facing a problem due to the lack of funding,? he was quoted as saying by Bisnis Indonesia daily.

Eddie said that PLN actually faced no technical problems in the construction of a water dam in the hydropower development but problems in the construction of underground equipment often caused a delay in a hydropower project.

According to him, the power generation at the existing hydropower plants in Java could reach their peak level in 2005 and after that their contribution to the total power supply could decline.

As of 2001, the power supply produced by PLN through its hydropower plants reached 3,015 MW. The supply come mostly from hydropower power plants PLTA Mrica in Central Java, with generation capacity of 180.9 MW, PLTA Carita and PLTA Saguling, both in West Java, with total capacity of 1,700 MW, PLTA Maninjau and Singkarang in West Sumatera, with total capacity of 243 MW, PTLTA Riau, with capacity of 114 MW and PLTA Tes in South Sumatera with capacity of 19.2 MW. (*)