Indonesia is exploring two sites on which to develop its first nuclear power plants as part of the nation’s shift from coal.
The first is in West Kalimantan, near where the new capital city of Nusantara would be, due its low earthquake risk, local government support and electricity demand, said Dadan Kusdiana, director-general of new and renewable energy and energy conservation at the Indonesian Ministry of Energy and Mineral Resources.
The second option is Bangka-Belitung islands for similar reasons.
“Nuclear is going to be a source of baseload power, the same class as geothermal and hydropower,” Kusdiana said in an interview in Jakarta. “Intermittent sources can grow first, but this clean baseload power will follow.”
Renewable energy sources such as solar and wind are often the most intermittent, while geothermal, hydropower and nuclear plants supply steady generation.
Nuclear power is being revived in Asia as costs of natural gas and coal soar.
Japan and South Korea are removing policies that limit nuclear power, while China and India are looking to build more reactors.
Indonesian policymakers are pushing for a clean energy bill to pave the way for its first nuclear power plant by 2045.
US companies Nuscale Power LLC and Fluor Corp along with Japan’s JGC Foundation would help Indonesia build a proposed 462 megawatt reactor in West Kalimantan.
A unit of US-based Thorcon has sent in a consultation paper to local authorities as part of a licensing process for a nuclear reactor, while Russia’s Rosatom State Corp has offered to build a floating plant.
The earliest commercial-scale nuclear reactor would likely start operating in 2039, Kusdiana said.
“Other than the long preparation, there needs to be a big demand,” he said.
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