PLN to Provide Solar Power to Indonesia's Remote Islands

Jakarta Globe, October 01, 2012

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State utility company Perusahaan Listrik Negara is close to completing the construction of 100 solar power plants on dozens of small and remote islands.

Vickner Sinaga, PLN operational director for eastern Indonesia, said the construction of the solar power plants, which will have a total capacity of 18,150 kilowatt peak (kWp), has been progressing smoothly. Kilowatt peak is a measure of power in solar energy devices.

The undertaking aims to provide electricity to remote populations.

“The progress [has gone] smoothly, and by the end of this year around 80 solar plants [will] have been constructed. The rest are expected [to be completed] next year,” Vickner said.

The project costs around Rp 600 billion ($63 million). According to PLN data, the solar plants currently being built are located in West Papua, North Maluku, East Nusa Tenggara, South and Southeast Sulawesi and South Kalimantan.

The government a few years ago instructed PLN to supply an additional 55,500 megawatts nationwide by 2019 and increase the electrification rate — the proportion of the population with access to the power grid — to 90 percent by 2020, from around 71 percent currently.

The first phase of the program has moved more slowly than planned, with the government admitting poor choices for contractors had delayed progress.

The government has initiated projects to add another 30,000 MW of power to the national grid by 2014 through a fast-track program using coal, geothermal and hydroelectric resources. The preferred source differs by region, Vickner said.

For remote islands, solar power plants are more economical, partly because consumption in such areas is low, he added.

“In Java, it is better to use diesel power plants when there is a lack of power. Solar power plants with 100 kWp would only last for five hours in Java,” Vickner said.

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