Labuan power plant's unit 2 to operate in March

The second unit of the 2x300 MW Labuan coal fired power plant is expected to begin commercial operation in March next year following the operation of the plant?s first unit in September this year.

Fahmi Mochtar, President Director of state owned electricity company PT Perusahaan Listrik Negara (PLN) said during a visit to the power plant complex in Labuan, Banten, on Thursday said that the trial test of the Unit 2 would be carried out this month before the launch of the commercial operation in March.

?The first firing of the 300-MW unit is scheduled to be carried out on Dec. 15, synchronization on Dec. 1 and reliability test from Jan. 29 through Feb. 27, 2010? he said, adding that the performance test will be carried during March 5-15, before the start of the commercial operation on March 18.

Fahmi was accompanying Energy and Mineral Minister Darwin Z. Saleh and State Minister for State Enterprises Mustafa Abubakar to have a closer look at the power project.

The construction of the Labuan power plant began in April 2007. It is one of several major coal-fired power plants built under the Phase One 10,000 MW power development program.

The plant was built by a consortium of Chengda Engineering Corporation and PT Truba Jurong Engineering as the engineering procurement and construction (EPC) contractor and PT Wika as the sub-contractor.

Each unit of the power plant uses 153.4 tons of coal per hour or about 3,681 tons a day (1.3 million tons of coal per annum). The coal is supplied by PT Titan Mining Energy (285,000 tons per year), a consortium of PT Arutmin Indonesia and PT Darma Henwa (95,000 tons per year), a consortium of PT Kasih Industri Indonesia and PT Senamas Energindo Mulia (950,000 tons per year) and Baramutiara Prima (570,000 tons per year). (godang)