Jokowi breaks ground for 350 MW mobile power plant projects in Sumatra
Wednesday, June 1 2016 - 01:51 PM WIB
The power plants will be equipped with gas engines, state owned electricity firm PT Perusahaan Listrik Negara (PLN), adding the groundbreaking ceremony was held in Bangka.
The six power plant projects are as follows:
1. MPP Bangka 2x25 MW
2. MPP Belitung 1x25 MW
3. MPP Paya Pasir Medan 3x25 MW
4. MPP Nias 1x25 MW
5. MPP Balai Pungut Duri 3x 25 MW
6. MPP Tarahan Lampung 4x25 MW
In his speech, Jokowi said Bangka and Belitung islands are among priority areas in the national power infrastructure development program. The power plants that will be built on both islands are expected to be able to meet the electricity needs there.
He noted that at present, the government is focused on building power infrastructures, but calling the public to be patient as all the projects take time to complete. ?For instance, a coal-fired power plant will take 3-5 years to develop,? he said.
Meanwhile, in his speech, PLN?s President Director Sofyan Basir said PLN opted to build MPP in Sumatra on the grounds that this type of power plant can be built relatively quickly. Moreover, the power plants will use gas, which is an environmentally friendly fuel. The six power plants are scheduled to start operation at the end of this year.
Sumatra has several separate electricity systems, which have yet to be connected with each other. They are the Northern Sumatra System which serves Aceh and North Sumatra provinces; the Sumatra Subsystem which serves Riau, West Sumatra, Jambi, Bengkulu, South Sumatra and Lampung provinces; the Bangka-Belitung System; and isolated systems in Nias, Mentawai and other small islands.
The Northern Sumatra System at present has a peak load of 2,090 MW while its available capacity reaches 2,327 MW and reserve 237 MW or around 11 percent. Meanwhile, the Central and Southern Sumatra Systems have a peak load of 2,041 MW, while their available capacities reach 2,827 MW and reserve 426 MW or around 15 percent.
In 2017, the Sumatran systems are supposed to have been connected with 270 kV cables and with the operation of new power plants, the system?s reserves are expected to reach 32 percent. Next, once the development of 11,000 MW power plants on the island, which are part of the 35,000 MW program, and the development of 1,300 km transmission lines that will link South Sumatra to North Sumatra and Aceh have been completed, the Sumatra system will become stronger, and able to serve all types of customers, including big customers and industries. Once all these have happened, the electrification ratio on the island will increase from 86 percent in 2016 to 98 percent in 2019.
?PLN is committed to implementing the 35,000 MW program. Our target for Sumatra for this year is that the supply capacity will reach 6,036 MW wit reserve amounting to 1,615 MW. In Lampung, our supply capacity target is 1,068 MW with reserve reaching 172 MW,? Sofyan said.
Three of the MPP power plants with a combined capacity of 75 MW will be built in Bangka and Belitung. At present, the available capacity in Bangka is 142 MW with peak lead averaging 130 MW. Meanwhile, the available capacity in Belitung now is 42 MW with an average peak load of 36 MW.
Editing by Johannes Simbolon