Nagekeo geothermal site in NTT, Indonesia set for tender

Labuan Bajo fishing village, East Nusa Tenggara, Indonesia (source: Tiket2.com / flickr, Creative Commons)

The Nagekeo geothermal site in East Nusa Tenggara (NTT), Indonesia will soon be offered for public auction as a result of the Government Drilling program. Under the program, the Indonesian Government does its own drilling before a geothermal prospect is auctioned off to the private sector.

The announcement was made by the Director of Geothermal at the Ministry of Energy and Mineral Resources (MEMR) Harris Yahya during a visit to South Solok in West Sumatra. “The highest risk of a geothermal project is during exploration because the cost can reach USD 5 million for one well.”

The geothermal exploration drilling program in Nagekeo was done by a third party at the government’s expense. With this program, the government hopes to attract investors interested in developing geothermal sites in Indonesia.

Harris also hopes that the newly passed Presidential Regulation 112 of 2022 will help develop the geothermal potential in South Solok. The site is being managed by PT Supreme Energy Muaralaboh with a currently installed capacity of 86 MW. However, the potential can be up to 220 MW.

Presidential Regulation 112/2022 has set new selling prices for electricity from geothermal power plants. There are also benefits on Non-Tax State Revenues and other production bonuses that can be beneficial to the local communities.

Source: Antara News