According to adnkronos.com:
Singapore, 24 August (AKI/Jakarta Post) – Indonesia, Singapore and Malaysia have agreed to build three interconnected power transmission networks using up to one billion US dollars in investment.Indonesian energy and mineral resources minister Purnomo Yusgiantoro said the agreements, signed on Thursday at the sidelines of an meeting in Singapore of energy ministries of the Association for Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), was part of the ASEAN Power Grid project.
Under the agreement, Indonesia, which is represented by state-run electricity company PLN, and its partners from the two neighboring countries would jointly build three power transmission lines connecting Sarawak in Malaysia with Pontianak in the Indonesian province of West Kalimantan; Penang in Malaysia with Riau in the Indonesian island of Sumatra; and Singapore with Batam and Bintan in Riau Islands of Indonesia.
In the short-term, PLN would use the cross-border transmission networks to buy electricity from either Singapore or Malaysia to cope with the electricity shortages in Sumatra and Kalimantan, the minister told The Jakarta Post.
In the long-term, PLN, which is currently engaged in a crash program to provide an additional power supply of 10,000 megawatts by the end of 2009, may be able to use the facilities to sell its power surplus to the two neighboring countries.
“In the future, we could take advantage of gas production from the Natuna gas block to build a power plant in Batam. The electricity from the island could be sold to Singapore,” PLN executive Syaiful B. Ibrahim said, adding that the company could also build a coal-fired power plant in Riau, where coal reserves are abundant.
Indonesia’s director general of electricity and energy use J. Purwono told the Jakarta Post that Indonesia was very supportive of the project it would ensure the country could overcome the current power crisis that has hit regions in Sumatra and Kalimantan.
He said in the future it would also help PLN to generate more income from exporting electricity.
To provide reliable supplies of electricity in the region, ASEAN member countries agreed in 1997 to jointly develop the ASEAN Power Grid project. The project envisions countries with abundant natural resources generating income from their surplus power while countries with high power demands met their electricity shortfalls with imports from neighboring ASEAN countries.
ASEAN is pursuing 11 power interconnections under the project, five of which are scheduled to be in operation by 2010.
Syaiful said three projects were still under examination but were targeted to be completed by 2012.
PLN will cooperate with Malaysian companies Sesco and Tenaga Nasional Berhad to build the power electricity lines connecting the two countries. PLN will cooperate with Singapore Power for its connections with Singapore.
ASEAN will need around 100 billion dollars in investment to meet the increasing demand for electricity in the region over the coming years.
This means if there is a economic down turns then everyone will not survive this electricity shortages, Singapore imported PNG (Piped Natural Gas) from Indonesia Natuna Field to power 80% of Singapore electricity and by looking at this plan may mean that the network of electricity will be shared and sold to Indonesia possibly at the spot price of electricity market (changes every 30min) according to demand and supply. By then the whole electricity market will be opened up and be sold to consumer residential houses (yes including HDB) in such tariff…that changes according to demand.
What does it mean to you and me? It means ….the electricity market might just open up by 2010 latest by 2012. If indonesia got higher demand….and pay higher price for the electricity…then you have to pay the same price too!! It will be so much higher then you are paying now.
So the good times will be over then…but life will still go on…with electricity…just more expensive that is.
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