PLN seeks additional coal supply for new power plants

State electricity company PT Perusahaan Listrik Negara (PLN) is seeking additional coal supplies to cope with the growing needs from existing and new power plants, Bisnis Indonesia reported on Tuesday.

PLN?s director for prime energy Nur Pamudji said in Jakarta on Monday that existing power plants would still need additional coal supplies because the existing suppliers have often failed to meet their commitment.

?The performance of coal supplies at existing plants is only between 80 and 85 percent,? he said during a visit to Bima, West Nusa Tenggara (NTB) province.

According to him, this year PLN needs about 40.8 million tons of coal. Next year, the coal needs will reach about 59.4 million tons.

PLN is building a number of coal-fired power plants to cope with the power supply shortage in the country. In NTB, it is building two coal-fired power plants - PLTU NTB I, with a capacity of 2 x 10 megawatt and PLTU NTB II, with a capacity of 25 megawatt.

The two power plants will need coal supplies of between 8,000 and 9,000 tons a month. (*)