South Sumatera authority offered to join Lahat power project
Tuesday, February 27 2001 - 04:30 AM WIB
South Sumatera administration has been offered to join the ownership of a coal-fired power plant, which will jointly be developed by PT Indonesia Power and coalmine operator PT Bukit Asam in Banjarsari village, Lahat in the province, Sriwijaya Pos reported on Tuesday.
Indonesia Power's director for commercial and development, Juwarno, said the presidents of the electricity company and PT Bukit Asam would soon meet the South Sumatera Governor to discuss the offer.
"At least three foreign investors have also expressed their interest to join the power project. But we have not decided whether or not we need their participation," he told local reporters through a teleconference from the electricity company's head office in Jakarta.
Indonesia Power, a subsidiary of state electricity company PLN and PT Bukit Asam signed an agreement last week to jointly develop a power plant in Banjarsari, Lahat, which they claimed could produce the cheapest electricity in the world.
The construction of the power plant which will use low quality coal or also known as lignite as its source of energy will cost the two companies about US$160 million.
Firdaus Akmal, the president of Indonesia Power has said that the power generation from the plant would only cost about 3.2 U.S. cent a kilowatt hour (kWh), he said, adding that the cost could be further reduced to 2.6 U.S. cent per kWh.
The power plant will have a power generating capacity of 2 x 100 megawatt (MW) or 1 x 250 MW, Firdaus said, adding that its fuel would mainly come from soft coal or lignite.
Bukit Asam, which operates massive coal mining concessions in the province, has up to two billion tons of lignite deposits to back up the power project.
Firdaus said that with a construction period of four years, the new power plant could begin commercial operation in 2005. (*)