Kamojang to reach full capacity again with new 30 MW turbine by October 2017
Kamojang geothermal plant, Indonesia (source: ThinkGeoEnergy, creative commons)
Alexander Richter
29 Nov 2016
PT Indonesia Power (subsidiary of PLN) expects to restart its 30 Kamojang Unit 1 geothermal plant by October 2017, which would bring the capacity of the plant complex back to 235 MW.
Having operated at only around 205 MW the Kamojang geothermal power plan complex in Bandung, West Java is expected to come back online at full capacity by October 2017.
The plant’s Unit 1 saw a damage to its turbine in April 2014 and has not been operating since. The shutdown of the 30 MW unit has affected the plant’s overall performance ever since.
Pertamina Geothermal Energy’s (PGE) Kamojang plant maintenance manager Faiq Kautsar attributed the damaged turbine to its expired shelf life, saying that the turbine had been operating 32 years past its shelf life.
The replacement and building process of the geothermal turbine needed more time compared to conventional ones as the turbine parts needed to be compatible with geological substances.
The Kamojang geothermal power plant complex consists of three units (Unit 1, Unit 2 and Unit 3) operated by PT Indonesia Power (a subsidiary of PLN), while the two other units (Unit 4 and Unit 5) are under the management of Pertamina Geothermal Energy. The overall installed capacity is expected to reach again its maximum capacity of 235 MW with the restart of Unit 1.
Currently, the plant can only produce 205 MW from its five units’ maximum capacity of 235 MW.
At Kamojang, Pertamina is delivering the steam to PLN’s units and there have been ongoing discusisons about the price of steam, which was solved this year.
Source: Jakarta Post
