UAE-based clean energy company Masdar and PLN, Indonesia’s state-owned utility company, have inaugurated the 145MW (192MWp) Cirata floating solar plant in Indonesia.
The inauguration ceremony was attended by Indonesian President Joko Widodo and other dignitaries.
Located on a 250-ha plot of the 6,200-ha Cirata Reservoir in the West Java region, the Southeast Asian floating solar photovoltaic (PV) plant will generate clean energy to power 50,000 households.
The Cirata floating solar plant, which achieved financial close in August 2021, will also eliminate 214,000 tons of carbon dioxide emissions.
Besides, the floating PV power plant is projected to save 40% of the fuel required by local diesel power plant.
In September this year, the renewable energy company signed an agreement with PLN Nusantara Power (PLN NP) to develop phase II of the Cirata floating PV plant.
The agreement came after a regulatory development from the Indonesia Ministry of Public Works and Housing which increased the portion of water coverage for renewable energy applications to 20%.
The expansion is expected to triple the capacity of the floating PV plant by adding up to 500MW.
Indonesia Minister of Energy and Mineral Resources Arifin Tasrif said: “The capacity of the Cirata Floating PLTS could be greater, with a maximum total potential reaching around 1.2 GW peak, if it utilised 20% of the total area of the Cirata reservoir.
“With the operation of the Cirata Floating PV, we hope it will increase investor confidence and encourage technological innovation as a solution to limited land in developing solar energy, where Indonesia has enormous floating PV potential.”
According to Masdar, the Indonesian floating PV project is the largest of its kind in the Southeast Asia region. All the power produced by the plant will be delivered and sold to PLN under a power purchase agreement (PPA) signed in January 2020.
Masdar CEO Mohamed Jameel Al Ramahi said: “The inauguration of Cirata demonstrates Masdar’s commitment to developing cutting-edge technologies to provide world-class solutions.
“We are delighted that the development of our first floating solar plant with PLN Group is fully operational and supporting Indonesia’s renewable energy objectives.”
