Government Serious On Overcoming Obstacles Hindering Power Projects

Jakarta (Antara Bali) - The government is serious about overcoming the obstacles hindering the development of power projects, with a combined capacity of 35 thousand megawatts (MW), in order to facilitate the investors, a minister stated.

"All ranks and files of the government are providing assistance for the development of the power projects in order to address the on-field constraints that usually pose a hindrance to the investors," State-owned Enterprises (SOE) Minister Rini Soemarno said.

Minister Soemarno made the remarks at a meeting with president directors of Independent Power Producers (IPP) companies in Jakarta on Wednesday.

In order to expedite the development of power projects in several regions, the government has intensified its efforts to overcome land clearance problems and the lengthy time needed to issue permits.

The government made the efforts through the Ministry of Energy and Mineral Resources (ESDM) and the state-owned electricity company PLN.

The government has also involved law enforcers to ensure the smooth implementation of the projects to meet the electricity supply needs of the people, she affirmed.

 In line with the government's efforts, investors are also expected to lend support to the projects by accelerating the construction of the 35 thousand MW power plants, which have been scheduled for completion in the coming five years.

Soemarno remarked that PLN should be able to carry out the program in cooperation with the investors in a bid to put to rest complaints about power outages from the people, tourism operators, hotels, and industries.

On the occasion, the minister also reiterated the government's resolve to sticking to its earlier target to build power projects, with a total capacity of 35 thousand MW.

"The president also hopes that by 2019 or 2020 at the latest, the people would be able to reap the benefits of the implementation of the 35 thousand MW power projects," she affirmed.

Therefore, investors should not be influenced by false news, she added.

Coordinating Minister for Maritime Affairs Rizal Ramli noted on Monday that the 35 thousand MW power projects are unlikely to be completed within five years.

"After we discussed it, we realized that it is impossible for us to complete the construction of the 35 thousand MW power projects in five years. It is likely to be achieved only in 10 years," the minister informed the press after attending a coordination meeting on electricity.

Minister Ramli pointed out that if the construction of the power projects is completed within five years, there will be a power surplus of about 21 thousand MW.

"PLN will experience a capacity that will exceed its peak burden until 2019, which according to our calculation amounts to 74 thousand MW, or about 21,331 MW capacity will remain idle," he noted.

"After holding an in-depth discussion, we found that the 16 thousand to 18 thousand MW power projects are most feasible. This capacity is actually already very large," he stated.

However, Vice President Jusuf Kalla affirmed that the capacity target of the power projects, proposed to be built until 2019, will not deviate from the earlier planned target of 35 thousand MW. The vice president made the statement while denying the outcome of Monday's talks, where it was reportedly decided to reduce the capacity from 35 thousand MW to only 18 thousand MW. (WDY)