Ormat passes first round in tender for N. Sumatra geothermal project

A consortium comprising of US-based Ormat Technologies and Indonesia?s PT Optima Nusantara has passed the first round of ongoing tender for the Simbolon Samosir geothermal working area in North Sumatra, according to tender evaluation result unveiled on January 20 by the Directorate General of New and Renewable Energy at the Ministry of Energy and Mineral Resources.

The directorate said that the consortium will move to the second and final stage of the bidding process, making it as the likely winner for the geothermal project.

The directorate said that other tender participants can still make objection to the first-round tender result until January 30.

The directorate repeated in December of last year tender for the Simbolon Samosir geothermal working area as the Ormat-Optima consortium was the only participant in the initial tender.

The 168,800 hectares Simbolon Samosir geothermal working area, spanning the regencies of Samosir, Toba Samosir, Tapanuli Utara, Humbang, Hasundutan, and Dairi in North Sumatra Province, holds estimated reserves of 150 MW and temperature reservoir estimate of 240 degree Celsius.

The government plans to develop a 110 MW geothermal power plant in the area with commercial operation date target of 2024. The electricity ceiling price from the project has been set at US$15.5 per kWh in accordance with Minister of Energy and Mineral Resources Decree No 17/2014.

Editing by Reiner Simanjuntak