PLN expects additional power plant capacity of 3,963 MW this year

By Nova Farida

State-owned electricity firm PT PLN expects additional installed power plant capacity of 3,963 MW this year as a number of power plant projects under the government?s 35,000 MW power plant development program will start commercial operation over the 12-month period.

PLN Director of Strategic Procurement Supangkat Iwan Santoso as saying on Monday that the bulk of the new capacity will come from coal-fired power plant (PLTU) projects with combined capacity of 2,315 MW, which will start operation around September-October.

He said that the new PLTU projects which will start operation this year are the PLTU Jawa 7 and PLTU Jawa 8, each with capacity of 1,000 MW, and PLTU Lontar expansion with capacity of 315 MW.

He said that if the target is realized, by end of this year around 20 percent (7,000 MW) of the total capacity under the 35,000 MW program will already be in the commercial operation status. He is also optimistic that the entire 35,000 MW power plant projects will be completed by 2023.

Director General of Electricity at the Ministry of Energy and Mineral Resources Andy Noorsaman Sommeng said earlier that as per end of last year, a total of 2,899 MW of the 35,000 MW program had reached the commercial operation date (COD) status. Another 18,207 MW are under construction stage, 11,467 MW of the projects have signed the power purchase agreement (PPA) but have yet to start construction, 1,683 MW still at procurement stage, and 954 MW at planning stage.

 

Editing by Reiner Simanjuntak