PLN completes land acquisition for PLTU Batang project

By Cepi Setiadi

State-owned electricity company PT PLN has finally completed acquisition of the remaining 12.5 hectares land requirement for the 2x1,000 MW PLTU Batang coal-fired power plant project in Batang, Central Java.

?Acquisition of the remaining land requirement for PLTU Batang has been completed,? said PLN Corporate Communications Manager Bambang Dwiyanto to Petromindo.com Thursday.

For years, PT Bhimasena Power Indonesia (BPI), a consortium comprising of IDX-listed coal giant PT Adaro Energy Tbk, and Japan?s J-Power Energy Power Development Co. Ltd. and Itochu Corp., had been facing difficulties in acquiring the required land for the US$4 billion project amid opposition from some villagers who demanded excessive price for the land.

At the request of the government, PLN took over last year the process of acquiring the remaining land requirement for the estimated US$4 billion project.

Editing by Reiner Simanjuntak