Engie in Indonesian Geothermal Project Win

With the announcement of a financing package of up to $440 million signed earlier this week, a new large scale geothermal project is kicking off in Indonesia raising hopes that development of geothermal projects are now finally picking up speed.

French ENGIE (formerly GDF Suez) through its subsidiary Storengy, sees itself as having all the drilling and underground expertise to manage such project. With construction expected to commence this year in the Solok Selatan region in West Sumatra province, the project will provide employment opportunities to 1,200 people and support local businesses during the 30-month construction period.

With commissioning planned in 2019, this first phase will generate 80 MW of emission-free electricity, the equivalent of the energy consumption of around 120,000 households.

Isabelle Kocher, ENGIE Chief Executive Officer, said: “I am proud of our teams who succeeded in confirming our expertise in such projects, from the underground exploration to the construction and operation of geothermal power plants. Those technologies are key for countries like Indonesia to provide their population with efficient low-carbon power generation sources. Our partnership in the Muara Laboh geothermal project is fully in line with ENGIE’s strategy to be a leader of the energy transition in the world, notably focusing on competitive renewable energies.”

Geothermal energy is a renewable, non-intermittent and eco-friendly source of energy that is both efficient and economical, using the heat coming from deep underground either for heat, power generation or even air-conditioning. ENGIE is a leading producer and supplier in Europe of geothermal energy for heating and cooling of residential and commercial facilities, using various geothermal sources.

ENGIE is part of the PT Supreme Energy Muara Laboh consortium with the Japanese trading and investment company Sumitomo Corporation and the Indonesian geothermal power developer, PT Supreme Energy.

The $440 Million financing agreement was signed by PT Supreme Energy Muara Laboh consortium with the Japan Bank for International Cooperation, the Asian Development Bank and a set of commercial banks under a guarantee from Nippon Export and Investment Insurance, to support clean energy development in Indonesia.

ENGIE has been present in Indonesia for over 60 years. Muara Laboh is the first renewable project of the Group in the country.

Source: Release by Engie