Document Actions

Indonesian nuclear power proposals

by Richard Tanter — last modified 20-Jun-2010 17:20

Latest news
Introduction
Muria nuclear power proposal site map
Nautilus Institute related studies

Latest news

No plans for nuclear power in Indonesia, Lynn Lee, Straits Times, 19 June 2010
Penundaan Penggunaan PLTN Mengandung Resiko [Delaying nuclear power involves risk], Antara, 27 May 2010
IAEA considers Indonesia ready to have nuclear power plants: official, Cundoko Aprilianto, Xinhua, 18 May 2010
Indonesia committed to have nuclear power plant soon, Cundoko Aprilianto, Xinhua, 17 May 2010
RI nuclear power project`s timeframe pushed back to 2018-2020, ANTARA News, 1 May 2010
Boediono: We must master nuclear technology, Tempo Interaktif, 13 April 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.