Truba asks higher price for its W. Kalimantan power project

PT Equator Manunggal Power (EMP) has asked state owned electricity firm PT Perusahaan Listrik Negara (PLN) to revise upwards the price of power from the power plant it plans to build in West Kalimantan, citing the rise in construction costs, Antara news agency reported.

The news agency however did not specify the price demanded by the firm.

EMP is the subsidiary of publicly-listed PT Truba Alam Manunggal Engineering Tbk. It plans to build a 2x25 Megawatt (MW) coal fired power plant in Siantan district of Pontianak.

Haryanto WS, PLN's general manager for West Kalimantan, said in Pontianak on Thursday that EMP?s demand for higher price did not affect the continuation of its power project.

Haryanto said that EMP was conducting a land clearance for the location of the first unit of the power plant in the Siantan district. The company expected to complete the construction of the first unit in 22 months, then continue with the construction of the second unit.

The power plant became the first private power plant on the island when its operator PT EMP launched construction works on November 2007.

In March 2008, EMP has secured a syndicated loan of Rp 365 billion from five local banks to build the power plant. (*)