Indonesia to Auction Off Geothermal Power Projects Worth $1b

Indonesia to Auction Off Geothermal Power Projects Worth $1b

The government will auction off six geothermal projects worth $1.02 billion
in September to expand Indonesia's renewable energy capacity as part of its
plan to become the world's largest geothermal producer.

Local companies and foreign investors from the United States, Italy, Japan,
South Korea, Turkey and China have expressed interest in the projects, which
will have a combined capacity of 255 megawatts.

"This auction is quite attractive, but we have to wait for the result
because the auction process usually takes four to five months," Yunus
Saefulhak, geothermal director at the Ministry of Energy and Mineral
Resources, said over the weekend.

The projects are Kapahiang in Bengkulu with a capacity of 110 MW, Simbolon
Samosir in North Sumatra with 110 MW, Borapulu in Central Sulawesi with 10
MW, Lamiding in North Maluku with 10 MW and Oka Ile Ange and Mount Sirung in
East Nusa Tenggara with capacities of 10 MW and 5 MW, respectively.

"The amount of investment in each geothermal region varies, depending on the
region and local conditions. But on average, the investment for geothermal
development is around $4 million per megawatt," Yunus said.

The government aims for Indonesia, which is now the world's third-largest
geothermal producer, to become the world's largest by 2021, overtaking
current number one, the United States.

Indonesia expects to have a total geothermal capacity of 3,559.5 MW within
the next four years. The country's total geothermal capacity amounted to
1,643.5 MW last year.

The United States' geothermal capacity is expected to stagnate at 3,450 MW
with no new developments being planned. Meanwhile the Philippines, currently
the world's second-largest geothermal producer, has fully tapped its
potential and may see its capacity decline from 1,870 MW currently.

This year, Indonesia will add an additional 215 MW capacity from the Sarulla
geothermal power plant in North Sumatra, 30 MW from Karaha in West Java, 20
MW from Sorik Marapi in North Sumatra and 55 MW from Ulubelu Unit 4 in
Lampung.

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Link to Original Article:
http://jakartaglobe.id/business/indonesia-to-auction-off-geothermal-power-pr
ojects-worth-1b/

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John Diecker
APT Consulting Group Co., Ltd.

www.aptthailand.com