PLTG Gilimanuk to temporarily halt operation in 2013

Gas fired power plant PLTG Gilimanuk, located in Jembrana regency, Bali, will temporarily stop operation in 2013 to pave the way for the plant?s regular maintenance service, which should be carried out for every 24,000 operating hours, Investor Daily reported on Tuesday.

?It will be a routine maintenance service. So, it will not affect the electricity system,? Agung Mastika, the spokesman of the Bali office of state electricity company PLN, said in Denpasar on Monday.

He said that PLN would increase power supply from other power plants in the province in order to minimize the impact from the temporary shutdown of PLTG Gilimanuk. ?We have also asked big hotels in the province to operate their power generators,? he said.

Bali receives power supply of about 690 megawatt (MW) from a number of power plants in the province and additional supply from Java which are distributed to the resort island through an under sea cable.

The power supply is still higher than the power consumption during peak hours which reaches about 664 MW. (*)