Currently, the electricity purchase model at Sesco has been applied in Sajingan, Sambas district and Badau, Kapuas Hulu district in order to meet the electrical energy shortage in the border areas.
Pontianak, West Kalimantan (ANTARA News) - Stated-owned Electricity Company (PT PLN) will push through its plan to buy one MW of electricity from Sesco, Malaysia, to meet energy needs in the Entikong border region, Sanggau district, West Kalimantan province.

"The purchase plan is ready and our target now is to make the connection later this month," Bambang Budiarto, general manager of PT PLN`s operations in West Kalimantan, said here Saturday.

He explained, all the preparations were ready, including the transformer, so it just wait for the connection between electricity network owned by Sesco, Malayasia with PLN`s transformer in Entikong.

"Currently, the electricity purchase model at Sesco has been applied in Sajingan, Sambas district and Badau, Kapuas Hulu district in order to meet the electrical energy shortage in the border areas," Bambang noted.

The electricity purchases made ​​since the distance between the power grid owned by Sesco, Malaysia is closer than that PLN has to build the existing network to power in the border areas, he added.

In addition, the construction of the power grid at the border requires a high cost because of its location is away.

Currently, PLN region West Kalimantan are still using diesel power plant so that the operational costs of Rp2,000 to Rp3,000 per kWh. While the highest selling price to the customer at Rp620 per kWh, so the rest is subsidized by the government.

"As if buying in Sesco, Malaysia it is only Rp900 per kWh. In addition, we do not need to pay maintenance and others. But the purchasing power is short-term," Bambang said.

The electricity purchased by PLN region West Kalimantan each of 400 kilowatts for Nanga Badau areas in Kapuas Hulu district and 200 kilowatts for Aruk in Sambas district.

Bambang stated, the purchase of such electricity is only temporary pending the construction of two steam power plant capacity of 255 MW in Parit Baru, Pontianak and Tanjung Gundul, Bengkayang district.

PLN region West Kalimantan will illuminate about 12 villages in the border region of Indonesia (Kalimantan Barat) - Malaysia in 2011.

The border villages included in the electricity into the village program among others are Temajok and Aruk in Sambas district, Jagoi Babang, Siding and Jagoibelida in Bengkayang district, Badau and Puring Kencana in Kapuas Hulu district, Jasa in Sintang district as well as Suruh Tembawang, Palak Pasang, Sekayam and Entikong in Sanggau district.

(U.SYS/A/KR-LWA/B/O001) (ANTARA)

Editor: Ella Syafputri
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