BANDUNG, June 20 (EngineeringDaily) --The Indonesian government is finalizing plans for an undersea power cable linking the islands of Java and Sumatra. The plans have been discussed in a limited cabinet meeting, and President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono has agreed to apply for additional external loans worth USD 993.8 million for funding the final stages of the project development.

According to Coordinating Minister for the Economy Chairul Tanjung, "Several important things were agreed upon at the cabinet meeting and have led to the revisions of the Blue Book compiled by the National Development Planning Ministry for the construction of the underwater cable between Sumatra-Java." These revisions included provisions for the socio-economic planning and funding.

The minister went on to emphasize the government’s desire for connectivity between power plants in Sumatra and other islands. As the nation’s center for coal production, Sumatra could supply the necessary power for surrounding islands. In particular, with the underwater cable, electricity can be supplied to the Java-Bali transmission network, which requires a great deal of electrical power.

"The construction of the underwater cable is necessary so power plants in Java do not need to be rebuilt to cope with the increased electrical demand. Even if rebuilt, the plants would require coal imported from Sumatra, which will create inefficiencies due to the coal transportation costs to Java," he said.

The project will include not only the undersea cable, but additional land cables as well. Minister Tanjung explained, "To meet the electricity needs in Sumatra, we will also build transmission lines of 500 KV across the island. So the power plants in Sumatra will be able to meet the demand for electricity in both Sumatra and Java.”

National Development Planning Minister Armida Alisjahbana explained the division and source of funding for the project. The total budget for the project is estimated at USD 2.128 billion and is divided into 4 stages.

The first and second stages will require USD 442.25 million and 752.20 million respectively. Both have been approved through a loan from the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA).

The third and fourth stages require funds amounting to USD 752.2 million and USD 181.60 million. "Phase 1 and 2 have had their source of funding for some time, and the president recently approved the funding for third and fourth stages as while,” said Minister Alisjahbana.

The undersea cable project is planned to be completed in 2017.

By Ismail Al Anshori