State electricity company PT PLN has revealed that Indonesia plans to build NPPs with a total capacity of up to 7 GWe by 2040 as stipulated in the draft of the Electricity Supply Business Plan (RUPTL – Rencana Usaha Penyediaan Tenaga Listrik).
“This is still a draft, so the modelling is still in progress,” PLN President Director Darmawan Prasodjo told the Energy, Mineral Resources & Environment Commission of the House of Representatives. He said the 7 GWe projection is an extension of the 2025-2034 RUPTL, which already includes plans for two nuclear plants of 250 MWe each.
He stressed that the larger plan requires comprehensive discussions on nuclear power in Indonesia’s energy legislation under the Energy & Mineral Resources Ministry. “The state must be involved here. PLN is only the executor of government policy. The 500 MWe in the 2025-2034 RUPTL is just the first step before we move toward a broader plan of around 7 GWe by 2040,” he explained. The RUPTL specifies that the two 250 MWe NPPs will be built in South Sumatra and West Kalimantan, with both plants expected to be on-grid by 2032.
Meanwhile, the Ministry has a longer-term vision of 35 GWe of nuclear power capacity by 2060, which could require the construction of more than 30 NPP units nationwide.
Recently, the Ministry confirmed that it had received official proposals from five countries, including Canada and Russia, to build NPPs in Indonesia. “We are still reviewing the proposals. We have already met with Canada and Russia,” Energy & Mineral Resources Minister Bahlil Lahadalia said. He emphasised that the government has not yet chosen a specific nuclear technology, and all proposals are still under evaluation.
