Labuan Bajo. Flores, a volcanic island in East Nusa Tenggara, has set to become the first region in Indonesia to meet the government’s 2025 renewable energy goal on the back of the wealth of geothermal resources on the island.
Today, about 19 percent of the island’s energy supply comes from renewable resources like hydro, geothermal and solar power plants.
“Today, 20 megawatts out of a total of 112 megawatts that already installed, [comes from renewable resources],” Lambok R. Siregar, the head of Flores generation unit at state utility company Perusahaan Listrik Negara (PLN), said last week.
The proportion will surge to 23 percent — meeting the government’s 2025 target — in February next year, as the 5 megawatts of power from Sokoria geothermal power plants commence operation, Lambok said. The power plant will have a capacity of up to 30 megawatts when its full development finished in 2024.
The Sokoria geothermal power plant is located near Kelimutu National Park, 33 kilometers from Ende, the second largest town on the island. Sokoria Geothermal Indonesia, an independent power producer, affiliated to Iceland’s geothermal power company.
“Flores can be faster. The renewable energy target can be achieved next year. We see even bigger renewable energy portion by 2025,” Lambok said.
The island will see hybrid power plants to be online in Bajawa and in Aesesa next year, providing 1.3 megawatts and 0.7 megawatts of power capacity, respectively. Wae Lega hydropower with a 1.8-megawatt power capacity will be online in 2021, followed by a geothermal power plant in Mataloko in 2024, providing a capacity of 20 megawatts.
