Indonesian nuclear power proposals

Latest news

Nuclear Power Not Needed in Indonesia: PLN, Ririn Radiawati Kusuma, Jakarta Globe, 23 March 2011
Indonesia not ready for nuclear plant: Minister, Adianto P. Simamora, Jakarta Post, 19 March 2011
Indonesia should go nuclear, says councilor, Jakarta Post, 17 March 2011
Indonesia insists nuclear plans are safe,Anthony Deutsch, Financial Times, 17 March 2011
Indonesia to Continue Plans for Nuclear Power, Aubrey Belford, New York Times, 17 March 2011
Russia offers RI help on nuclear power, Zamzam Aden, The Jakarta Post, 9 February 2011
Announcement For Pre-Qualification, Number: 001/PL 00 01/PBJ.3/2011, Committee for Consultancy Service Procurement, Chairman: Dr. Ir. Sudi Ariyanto, M. Eng., January 10, 2011
Terms of Reference (ToR) of Nuclear Power Plant Siting in Bangka Island of Bangka Belitung Province (2011- 2013), No. 66/VI/2010, Panitia Pengadaan Jasa Konsultansi, Batan, 28 June 2010 [Batan unofficial translation]

Best prepared to develop nuclear energy, Artasastra.com, January 17, 2011
Nuclear power ‘not feasible’ for RI: Expert, Imung Yuniardi, Jakarta Post, 23 December 2010

Indonesia plans to relocate its first planned nuke power plant, Rangga D. Fadillah, Jakarta Post, 2 December 2010

Introduction

There are presently serious proposals for three separate nuclear power projects in Indonesia. Two are as yet poorly developed ideas, with little likelihood of moving forward in the near future. One plan, backed by local politicians and Russian nuclear plant vendor Rosatom, proposes a small Russian-built floating nuclear power plant to supply electricity to Sulawesi from Gorontalo province. The other, which has strong IAEA support, centres on a nuclear powered desalination plant on Madura that would also co-generate electricity for the Java-Madura-Bali (Jamali) electricity grid. Neither of these plans is progressing quickly.

The most important Indonesian nuclear power proposal from the National Atomic Energy Agency (Batan) is the revived longstanding proposal to build a major nuclear electricity generating station on the north coast of Central Java on the Muria Peninsula. Batan’s proposal to build the first of four 1,000 MW pressurised water reactors (PWR) at Ujung Lemahabang in the village of Balong, about 20 kms northeast of Jepara, is the agency’s third substantial attempt at getting government commitment to a nuclear plant on the Muria peninsula since the early 1980s.

The first, strongly supported by then Minister for Research and Technology B.J.Habibie, was thwarted in the late 1980s by opposition from the World Bank and the Ministry of Finance, combined with the then dominant military’s visceral dislike of Habibie. The second attempt in the mid-1990s ended with the Asian financial crisis of 1997 and the subsequent fall of the New Order.

This site currently concentrates on the proposed Muria peninsula development, but will in the future address the Gorontalo and Madura proposals. Published pages will be updated as new information comes to hand.