Italy?s Enel begins field surveys in Lampung geothermal power project
Thursday, June 15 2017 - 08:49 AM WIB
Petromindo|Lucky
Italian renewable energy firm Enel Green Power S.p.A. (EGP), in consortium with the Indonesian geothermal developer PT Optima Nusantara Energi, field survey in Way Ratai geothermal power project in Lampung province.
?Enel is currently in the process of getting necessary environmental permits well as local government permits, and conducting geological, geophysical and geochemical surveys at Way Ratai geothermal power project,? Yunus Saefulhaq, Geothermal Director at the Ministry of Energy and Mineral Resources told Petromindo.com.
This consortium jointly established a special purpose vehicle (SPV) holding the project, namely PT Enel Optima Nusantara Energi, in which Enel has the majority stake (90%) and the rest is owned by PT Optima.
The consortium was awarded license to explore geothermal resources and develop the 55 MW Way Ratai geothermal power project in July of last year. The project will be the first to be developed by Enel in the country, marking the company?s entry into Indonesia?s renewables market. Enel will be investing up to 30 million US dollars for the exploration phase of the project, which is part of the investment programme set by the Group?s current strategic plan.
Francesco Starace, CEO and General Manager of Enel said earlier that construction of the geothermal power plant, which depends on the results of the exploration phase, is expected to be completed and enter operation in 2022. In line with the tender rules, the energy produced by the geothermal power plant, which is expected to generate around 430 GWh per year, will be sold to the national utility PLN under a 30-year power purchase agreement (PPA).
Editing by Alexander Ginting