PLN, Pelindo III plan synergy in energy, logistic areas

State-owned electricity firm PT PLN and state-owned sea port operator PT Pelindo III plan to form synergy in particular segments of their business operations to help bolster efficiency.

Pelindo III said in a statement Tuesday that to help realize the plan, the two companies had on March 29 held a discussion in Surabaya, East Java, attended among others by Deputy of the Office of State Minister of State Owned Enterprises, Edwin Hidayat.

“There are plenty of areas where the two companies can cooperate in the maritime business sector.  Particularly in relation to energy (supply), such as transport of fuel and storage tanks in the port areas.  The synergy is aimed at increasing efficiency in the supply of energy in Indonesia,” he said as quoted by the statement.

Pelindo III President Director Doso Agung said that one area where synergy can be established is in the operation of PLN’s fuel terminals as Pelindo III has the expertise in port management.  This in turn would allow PLN to focus on the core electricity business.

Meanwhile, Pelindo III also operates shore connection at the ports to provide electricity for vessels when entering the port.  The shore connection facility allows ships to use electricity to turn on the engine when navigating to enter the port, thus cutting down consumption of more expensive fuel oil.

Doso said that under the planned synergy, PLN can supply the required electricity for the shore connection facilities, which means that Pelindo III does not have to develop own power plants.

PLN said that the proposed synergy will also help trigger value creation such as in the company’s terminals, which if managed and operated by Pelindo III can be further optimized to not only serve PLN’s operations but also support logistics supply in the region where the terminal is located.

Editing by Reiner Simanjuntak