Russia offers nuke power to Indonesia

The Jakarta Post, Jakarta, Wed, August 23, 2017

Russian Ambassador to Indonesia Mikhail Galuzin has said his country wants to invest in Indonesia’s nuclear energy future to help increase the country’s electrification rate, which currently stands at 89.5 percent.

“We are of the view that Indonesia will not be able to meet its electricity demand in the conventional way. Therefore, we offer nuclear plants,” Galuzin told journalists in Jakarta on Wednesday as reported by Antara.

He said his country had deep experience in developing nuclear energy and had helped many countries construct nuclear power plants. Last year, Russia helped Iran construct nuclear plants worth some US$10 billion.

Other countries that have used Russia’s nuclear technology include Nigeria, Jordan and India.

In May, representatives of Russia’s Rosatom State Atomic Energy met with Coordinating Maritime Affairs Minister Luhut Pandjaitan to make a similar offer.

The company offered to develop nuclear plants with a capacity of 1,000 Megawatts (MW) in Bangka Belitung and East Kalimantan - regions that are relatively resistant to earthquakes.

At the time, Luhut said Indonesia was not ready to add nuclear energy to its national energy mix.

Strong opposition from environmentalists to nuclear energy emerged following the breakdown of the nuclear plant in Fukushima, Japan, in 2011, after the strong earthquake hit the East Asian country.


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