Al-Mohannadi during the signing ceremony with PT PLN (Persero). Looking on is HE the Minister of Economy and Commerce Sheikh Ahmed bin Jassim bin Mohamed al-Thani. PICTURE: Shemeer Rasheed

By Peter Alagos
Business Reporter


Nebras Power and Indonesia’s electricity corporation, PT PLN (Persero), have signed an agreement for the construction of a 500 megawatt gas-powered power plant in Northern Sumatra.
Nebras Power chairman Fahad bin Hamad al-Mohannadi did not reveal specific details of the project but told Gulf Times that the two companies were “still in the finalisation phase of negotiations on the uptake of the contract and the fuel supply agreement”.
“It is still in the early stages, which is why we cannot quantify the investment. But the project is a full chain starting with the 500MW power plant, which is around $300mn. In addition, there will be a distribution system for gas and also a gas receiving terminal,” al-Mohannadi explained.
He added: “At this stage, we do not have the exact figures but this agreement would get the ball rolling towards developing the strategy of investments in Indonesia.”
Citing Indonesia’s plans to generate 35,000MW over the next five years, al-Mohannadi said Nebras was open to plans of increasing the power plant’s capacity. “This will all happen in time if we are successful in developing our project correctly and if we create a good ground for further relations,” he said.
Asked about the timeframe of the project, al-Mohannadi noted, “There is an indication from them that they want the power plant to be ready by 2019; that is the target but at this stage there is still no definite timeframe.”
In a speech, Indonesian President Joko Widodo stressed that Indonesia was focused on improving its infrastructure. The government, he added, has also increased its education budget to “refocus” on human capital.
Widodo also encouraged the Qatari government, particularly the business community to take part in Indonesia’s mega projects that are now in the pipeline. These include some 24 new seaports, 15 new airports, 2,630kms of new roads, 35,000MW power plants, and mass rapid transportation systems in as many as 23 Indonesian cities. “These major projects will complement our aim to establish Indonesia as a manufacturing and production hub. To simplify and ease development, the government has launched a comprehensive economic package, which will give sound platform for the implementation of the projects.
“Indonesia has allocated $21bn from its 2016 national budget for infrastructure projects. This means that we still need investments from private sector hence, I am inviting our brothers and sisters to make a historic leap in the cultural, economic, social, and political relationship between our two countries. Today is, by far, the best time to invest in Indonesia,” Widodo stressed.