In order to succeed the 35,000 Megawatt (MW) mega project program, the Government of Indonesia plans to build a number of new power plants, as stated in the Electricity Supply Business Plan (RUPTL) document for the 2013-2022 period. The Upper Cisokan Pumped Storage Hydro Power Plant (PLTA) is one of the important projects in the construction of new power plants that use new and renewable energy sources (EBT).
The UCPS hydropower plant, which is located in Rongga Subdistrict, West Bandung, will be the largest hydropower plant in Indonesia, as well as the first to use pumped storage technology. The UCPS PLTA consists of two dams. Water in the lower reservoir will be pumped to the upper reservoir using the remaining thermal energy (base load). This thermal energy is taken from the Java-Bali interconnection system when low loads occur, namely early in the morning or early in the morning.
When the peak load occurs between 5 pm and 10 pm, water will flow from the Upper Reservoir to the Lower Reservoir through the Headrace Tunnel and Penstock. The water that is distributed will later go to the powerhouse to produce electrical energy which will later be supplied to meet the needs of the community.
The existence of the UCPS PLTA is expected to provide a supply of electrical energy during peak load processes. In this case, it is a backup generation facility if one day there is a decrease in the capacity of the electricity network. Besides that, it also serves to help regulate the frequency of the system as a whole. The frequency is between 49 and 51 Hertz (Hz).
The UCPS hydropower plant has a capacity of 4 x 260 MW, the construction process will be carried out by PLN Central Java Development Unit 1 (UIP JBT 1), and it is estimated that the Commercial Operation Date (COD) will be in 2024. The construction of the UCPS PLTA is budgeted with a budget of USD 765 million with details of USD 638 million from the World Bank, USD 20 million from the central government, and USD 107 million from PLN.
IMPORTANT CONTRIBUTION OF PLN ENGINEERING
It is a matter of pride that PLN Engineering is directly appointed by PLN, as the parent company, as a consultant which includes engineering supervision, construction supervision, QA & QC, down to design details.
PLN Engineering Generator Senior Manager, Kadarisman, explained that there were several efforts made by PLN Engineering to achieve the construction target. One way is to collaborate with foreign consultants. “Collaboration with foreign consultants is being carried out for design details. Currently it is still in the bidding stage,” said Kadarisman.
With regard to the extension of the work schedule from the previously set target, Kadarisman hopes that the current phase that is being worked on can be completed by July 2019. Then, the next stage will be continued with power plant construction from August 2019 to 2024.
DEVELOPMENT STAGES
The UCPS hydropower development process is divided into several stages. The first stage is the construction of an access road. In the second stage, the construction of an upper & lower DAM will be carried out. Next is the construction of power house and water channels. The last stage of development, namely the fourth stage, is the construction of a switchyard and a 500 Kv transmission line.
Deputy Manager for Project Control and K2 PLN UIP JBT I, Ruly Chaerul, said the contractor was ready to start work in the near future. “The contractor has committed to immediately start work,” he explained.
Ruly added, “The contractor will start the repair work of Permanent Access Road (PAR) and later it will be continued in parallel with the main work.” On the other hand, progress has now come to discussion of amendments regarding additional work to be carried out in accordance with the needs of the project.
In the first semester of 2018, the UCPS PLTA has entered the main construction development stage. A pretty encouraging news.
