PLN's power plants will get additional gas supply in 2007

Minister of Energy and Mineral Resources Purnomo Yusgiantaro said that the government would establish a coordination team to ensure that state owned electricity company PLN's power plants will receive additional gas supply beginning 2007, Neraca reported on Wednesday.

Speaking to reporters on Tuesday, Purnomo said that he had signed the document on the establishment of the team which would comprise representatives of PLN, gas utility company PGN, Pertamina and the directorate general of electricity and energy use.

One of the important tasks of the team would be to ensure there would be additional supply of about 100 million cubic feet per day of gas supply for the Muara Tawar combined-cycled power plant in Bekasi beginning 2007.

The gas will be supplied from the South Sumatra-Java gas transmission network which is now under construction.

He said that the gas supply would enable the Muara Tawar power plant to stop the use of diesel oil which at present reached about one million kilo liters a year. "The next task is to prepare for the establishment of LNG terminal in Cilegon which would receive LNG gas supply from BP's Tangguh LNG plant in Papua," he added.

According to him, the LNG receiving terminal which would receive LNG supply of about 400 million cubic feet per day should be built between 2008 and 2009. "Besides from Tangguh LNG plant, the terminal can also receive LNG from Bontang," he said.

Another effort, he said, is try to get gas supply of about 45 million cubic feet per day from CNOOC to add gas supply for power plants located around Cilegon, he said. (*)