Sicanang power plant?s unit temporarily shut down

A number of investors in North Sumatra have formally filed their complaints with the province?s investment office over power blackouts which has often took place in the province, Kompas reported on Wednesday.

Salman Ginting, the head of the investment promotion office in the province, said in Medan Tuesday that the acute shortage of power supply had seriously hurt business activities in the province.

He said that the lack of power supply had also discourages investors from doing business in the province. ?A Japanese investor has cancelled their plan to develop a silicon mine in Tapanuli because the local government is unable to guarantee the power supply for the mine operation,? he added.

A series of power blackouts occurred in several parts of the province during the past several days due to the halt in the operation of a generation unit of the PLN?s 935-MW Sicanang combined-cycle power plant, which has the capacity to produce 190 MW.

Maradjohan, a deputy manager at PLN's office in North Sumatra, said the power plant's Unit No. 21 was temporarily stopped to allow a routine overhaul work as it had operated for more than 130,000 hours.

However, the shutdown was extended because the company found damage in the unit's turbine during the overhaul works, he said, adding that the plant?s Unit No. 22 (190 MW) would also undergo a major overhaul in the coming weeks. (*)