Japanese investors eye Indonesia's geothermal

A delegation of Japanese investors led by Minister of Economy, Trade and Industry Shocihi Nakagawa have expressed their strong interest to develop geothermal in Indonesia as an alternative energy to curb the heavy impact of the sharp increase in fuel prices, Bisnis Indonesia reported on Thursday.

"The Japanese investors also asked the possibility of entering the country's electricity sector," Minister of Energy and Mineral Resources Purnomo Yusgiantoro said in Jakarta on Wednesday following a meeting with the visiting delegation.

During the meeting, Japanese investors also asked if the electricity tariffs in Indonesia were attractive enough for them to run a power plant in the country, the minister said.

According to the minister, the Japanese investors also questioned the government's plan to raise fuel prices during the meeting. The Japanese investors, Purnomo said, feared that an increase in the fuel price would make their businesses in Indonesia no longer competitive.

Purnomo admitted that the government planned to increase fuel prices in a bid to reduce the swelling fuel subsidy. "But even if there is an increase in fuel price, it will be still lower than those in other countries," he said. (*)