Security at E Java Paiton power plant increased: Report
Monday, July 23 2001 - 03:29 PM WIB
He said the government and PLN decided last week to post military troops and police in and around the Paiton site, located in Wahid's home province.
They have also increased patrols along the roads leading to the Paiton site to block Wahid supporters protesting the start of impeachment proceedings against the embattled president.
"We haven't received any threats, so we don't think there will be a major disturbance, the PJB official said.
A Paiton Energy official said Monday about 155 soldiers from the army and marines arrived at the site Wednesday or Thursday. He said Paiton power plant operators, the local police, the military and the PLN are in daily contact about the security situation.
"We don't know how long it will be like this," the Paiton Energy official said. "The troops could stay for one to three weeks depending on the outcome and the upset."
The PJB official said the nearby army camp is prepared to dispatch additional forces to the Paiton site if needed.
Indonesia's national assembly opened an impeachment hearing early Monday and was replacing Wahid with Vice President Megawati Sukarnoputri.
The Paiton plants are currently operating normally, the Pempangkipan Java Bali official said. However, if disrupted, the result would be massive blackouts, as the Paiton power plants provide 60 percent of East Java's power.
The Paiton site houses two power generation units owned by PLN which have a combined capacity of about 1,000 megawatts. The site also houses two units owned by PT Jawa Power with a total capacity of 1,200 MW and two units owned
by Paiton Energy with a total capacity of 1,230 MW.
Paiton Energy's shareholders include Edison Mission Energy, a unit of Edison International, General Electric Co. of the U.S. and Japan's Mitsui & Co.
PT Jawa Power, a consortium comprising Siemens AG, PowerGen PLC and PT Bumipertiwi Tatapradipta, commissioned its Paiton units earlier this year. (*)