The Indonesian government is to auction off geothermal resources in Ngebel, Ponorogo and Ijen, Banyuwangi, East Java, to improve power supplies in Java and Bali, Head of the provincial energy and mineral resources agency, Tutut Herawati, said the government was preparing a joint team from the central government, provincial and regency administrations to open a tender for the two geothermal projects. The total capacity of the two sites is more than 400 MW.

“The joint committee will offer $3 million per kilowatt hour and will select three winners for each project,” Herawati said Thursday. The first winner will be required to pay $10 million in advance as a guarantee and to start operations within six months. “If it fails to fulfill this condition, the project will be granted to the second winner,” she said.

Herawati said the province had a further nine geothermal deposits that would be offered to investors in the future. The nine, located in Madiun, Mojokerto, Probolinggo, Pacitan, Malang and Sumenep, have a combined potential capacity of 580 MW.

Separately, the Director General for Coal and Geothermal Minerals at the Energy and Mineral Resources Ministry, Bambang Setiawan, said the government would continue tapping renewable and environmentally friendly geothermal energy.

“The government will not impose taxes on the imports of any materials for geothermal exploration as incentives for investors to produce the energy,” he said.

“The government will also explore the geothermal energy in Seulawah and Jaboi in Aceh, Jailolo in North Maluku, Ungaran in Central Java, Mt. Tapomas, Tangkuban Perahu and Cisolok in West Java and Sokoria in East Nusa Tenggara,” he said.

Source: The Jakarta Post (via indonesia.go.id)