Small-scale binary geothermal plant ready to operate at Lahendong
Low-temperature pilot plant by Duerr, a GFZ pilot project at Lahendong, Indonesia (source: Stefan Kranz, GFZ)
Alexander Richter
18 Feb 2022
Construction has been concluded for 0.5 MW demonstration binary cycle geothermal plant at the Lahendong geothermal field managed by Pertamina Geothermal Energy in Indonesia.
Pertamina Geothermal Energy(PGE) has completed the construction of a binary cycle geothermal power plant in Lahendong, Tomohon, North Sulawesi. This power plant is small in scale with a capacity of 0.5 MW.
Apart from Lahendong, the generator geothermal small-scale environmentally friendly will also be developed into other geothermal areas currently managed by the subsidiary Pertamina which is under the Sub Holding Power & New Renewable Energy (PNRE).
“This plant with a capacity of 0.5 MW is a milestone for Pertamina Geothermal Energy and this opens up opportunities for the development of other small-scale PLTPs,” said Director of Exploration and Development of PT PGE, Tafif Azimudin, in an official statement today.
The binary geothermal power plant utilizes geothermal wet steam and residual geothermal energy from conventional geothermal power plants. The construction of this power plant has been carried out by the Agency for the Assessment and Application of Technology (BPPT) since early 2019. According to Tafif, the Lahendong PLTP is predicted to continue to produce for the next 45 years.
We previously reported of the plant in early 2021.
The funding for this project came from the German Government through the GeoForschungsZentrum (GFZ) German Research Center for Geosciences amounting to Rp 45 billion (around USD 3 million), and the Ministry of Research, Technology and Higher Education, amounting to Rp 12 billion (around USD 800k).
BPPT engineer, Agus Nurrohim, added that GFZ is responsible for manufacturing turbines and generators, while the manufacture of heat exchangers and cooling towers is carried out by domestic contractors.
“The Binari PLTP can also be used for geothermal potential with medium and low temperatures (medium enthalpy and low enthalpy), which are usually small in scale,” said Agus.
Until the end of 2021, PT PGE has operated 21 geothermal power plants in six work areas, namely in Kamojang, Sibayak North Sumatra, Ulebelu, Lahendong, Lumut Balai South Sumatra, and Karaha West Java. The total capacity of the 21 PLTPs reached 672 MW, equivalent to 29.51 percent of the national capacity.
If it is added with the PLTP JOC (joint operation contract), the total capacity will increase to 82.1 percent of the national capacity. Furthermore, PGE will complete the 500 kW Binary PLTP project in the Lahendong Area, using binary technology that is different from conventional technology in other Geothermal Power Plants.
Source: Kumparan
Correction: This article was adapted to reflect that the plant in question here is not the geothermal plant we reported on earlier, yet is a new 500 kW unit supplied by Chinese supplier Kaishan. (see new article from Feb. 22, 2022)
