Financial closure for 35,000 MW electricity project

Jakarta. In a meeting on the 35,000 megawatt electricity project held today at the Office of the Vice President, Vice President Jusuf Kalla said the state-owned electricity firm PLN must immediately complete financial closure for the projects run in 2016.

“This is in a bid to ensure the project run as planned,” he said.

Considering the sluggish world economy, Mr Kalla added, it is the time for Indonesia to take the opportunity to increase its capacity in building infrastructure.

“We don’t want to pass on this opportunity,” he said.

He then reminded PLN to make independent power producess (IPP) as a business partner, not merely a contractor or a vendor, based on mutual benefit.

PLN president director Sofyan Basir previously reported in the meeting that the company has disbursed as much as 76 trillion rupiahs for the projects run in 2016, yet it still needs more financial support for the construction of electricity main stations and transmissions that will be done simultaneously.

“Some donors like ADB (Asian Development Bank) and the World Banks have offered us financial aids,” he said.

In the meantime, CEOs of some state-owned banks, namely Mandiri, BRI, and BNI, who are also attended the meeting expressed their inclination to support financially the projects.

Also present in the meeting were Coordinating Economic Minister Darmin Nasution, State-owned Enterprises Minister Rini Soemarno, Energy and Mineral Resources Minister Sudirman Said, and National Development Planning Minister Sofyan Djalil.