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Pertamina and PLN locked over price of steam for Kamojang plant

Pertamina and PLN locked over price of steam for Kamojang plant Well of Pertamina at Kamojang, Indonesia (source: ThinkGeoEnergy, creative commons)
Alexander Richter 7 Jan 2016

A fierce dispute over the price of steam between Pertamina Geothermal Energy and PLN for the Kamojang power plant Units 1 to 3, could essentially shut down the plant if no agreement is reached before the end of the month.

Reported this afternoon in the Jakarta Post, Pertamina Geothermal Energy and power firm PLN, both are state-owned enterprises, are locked over the pricing of geothermal steam. Both are now blaming each other in this dispute that might shut down the Kamojang geothermal power plant.

Ongoing discussions on pricing ended in threat by Pertamina through its subsidiary Pertamina Geothermal Energy (PGE) to stop the supply of steam used to generate electricity at Kamojang power plant units 1, 2 and 3, which belong to state-owned power firm PLN, because no price deal had been achieved. The halt in supply was to begin as early as Feb. 1.

“Pertamina has proposed the most lenient offering under an extension for an interim agreement with PLN. However, PLN sent us a letter saying that it wouldn’t extend the contract with PGE, meaning the steam wells risked being shut down,” Pertamina spokesperson Wianda Pusponegoro said.

She called for PLN to come back to the negotiating table before the end of the month. PLN, for its part, claimed Pertamina was asking too much.

“If the price were fair, we would have accepted it. After all, we’ve worked together for 32 years. But we were taken aback when Pertamina asked such a high price for a period of only five years,” PLN senior manager Agung Murdifi said. He declined to reveal Pertamina’s offer.

Source: Jakarta Post