PLN to boost hydropower development

By Febry Silaban

State owned electricity firm PT. Perusahaan Listrik Negara (PLN) plans to develop a number of hydropower plants (PLTA) to boost power supply in some parts of Indonesia, including Sumatra, West Java, Sulawesi, and Papua.

PLN?s President Director Nur Pamudji said the hydropower potentials in Indonesia reached approximately 75,000 mega watts (MW), but the existing installed capacity of hydropower was only approximately 4,000 MW or 6 percent of the potentials.

"The development of hydropower plants is part of the program to increase electricity supply from renewable energy," said Nur in Jakarta on Wednesday.

Nur explained that in Sumatra, PLN will build PLTA Peusangan 1 and 2 in Aceh with a combined capacity of 86 MW, PLTA Asahan 3 in North Sumatra (174 MW), 45 MW PLTA Wampu (45 MW) in North Sumatra, PLTA Batang Toru in North Sumatra (517 MW), PLTA Merangin (350 MW) in Jambi and PLTA Semangka in Lampung (56 MW).

In West Java, it will build PLTA Upper Cisokan (1,024 MW), PLTA Jatigede (110 MW), and PLTA Rajamandala (47 MW).

Meanwhile in Sulawesi, the firm will build PLTA Poso in Central Sulawesi (195 MW), PLTA Malea in South Sulawesi (90 MW), and PLTA Bondo Batu in South Sulawesi (110 MW); and in Papua, PLTA Baliem (50 MW) in Wamena, and PLTA Yawei/Urumuka (300 MW) in Timika.

"All funding will come from the Government and developers. The national total installed capacity of hydropower plants will reach 7,000 MW to 2021," he said.

Editing by Johannes Simbolon