The central government will build a 10-megawatt (MW) capacity gas power plant in the Morotai Island Regency, North Maluku, to meet the electricity demand in the area.

“Construction of the power plant will be started this year after we meet some related requirements, such as the principal permit from the local government and the determined location in South Morotai,” North Malukus Head of the Energy and Mineral Resources Department Safruddin stated here on Tuesday.

The process to build a 10 MW gas power plant in Morotai is part of the implementation of providing basic infrastructure in order to develop Morotai as one of the 10 major tourist destinations in Indonesia and a Special Economic Zone.

Electric power is viewed as a basic infrastructure that is significantly needed in the region, since it currently only has 3 MW mainly generated by a diesel power plant, which is prone to breakdowns owing to issues, such as engine damage.

Morotais limited electricity generation capacity has led several investors, both from within and outside the country, to put off their investment plans since they need a large amount of electricity to operate their businesses.

“Last week, the representative from the Embassy of Poland had visited Morotai to explore the possibility of investing in a tourism area, but one of the requirements they had put forth to realize their investment plans was sufficient electrical energy,” Safruddin remarked.

To address this issue, Indonesias central government has expressed its commitment to providing electrical energy largely needed by several investors by starting work to build a 10 MW gas power plant in 2017 that would be followed by other power plants, mostly using sources of renewable energy.

According to Safruddin, several countries, such as Japan, were already showing interest to build power plants by harnessing the energy of ocean waves in the region, which in the era of World War II had become the base of the Allied forces.

source: antaranews.com