REPUBLIKA.CO.ID, JAKARTA -- The government has reiterated its determination to build a nuclear power plant (PLTN) to provide inexpensive electricity for its fast growing population, now reaching about 250 million people.

Yet, it is still undecided where the plant will be located, after the initial plan to build in the Muria Peninsula, Central Java, was scrapped following persistent opposition from local residents, non-governmental organizations and environmentalists.

Over the years, groups have expressed opposition to the plan. The government was advised to develop, instead, environmentally friendly sources for power, such as water, solar energy and harnessing sea currents.

Indonesian Research and Technology Minister Gusti Muhammad Hatta said on Friday that the government is resolved to continue its plan to build a nuclear power plant, arguing that over 76 percent of the people have agreed to the development of a PLTN.

"We will build a nuclear reactor for generating power," Minister Gusti Muhammad Hatta said. However, the location of the nuclear power plant, which will have a capacity of approximately 30 MW, has not yet been decided.

According to a survey conducted by an independent organization for the National Nuclear Energy Agency, BATAN, 76.5 percent of Indonesians approve of nuclear development for scientific and technological purposes, such as energy development, medical care, animal husbandry and food security.

Yet the public has also expressed opposition to the government's plan to build a PLTN, fearing the dangers it might pose due to radioactive leaks.

According to International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) data, radioactive waste would remain dangerous for 24 thousand years. Therefore, a couple of years ago, Lilo Sunaryo, a nuclear turbine expert who graduated from a university in Russia, said nuclear waste needed special handling to prevent it from creating environmental problems.

The peril of a nuclear incident is the main reason behind the publics opposition. The explosion of the Chernobyl nuclear reactor in Russia in 1986 and the leakage at Mihama's nuclear reactor in Japan in 2004 are still fresh on their minds. In Chernobyl, ten years after the leak, thousands of people died of exposure to discharged radioactive material.

However, before starting to build a nuclear power reactor, the government, through the National Atomic Energy Agency (BATAN), has carried out 30 years of feasibility studies with consultants from the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) in 1976, from Italy in 1984, from BECHTEL (US) in 1984 and from the United States and Japan in 1994.

Gusti Muhammad Hatta said nuclear is not something mysterious. It has been used in various fields for the welfare of the public and, therefore, the government is resolved to build a nuclear power plant.

"It is not something ghostlike. It has been utilized in various fields," the minister said, explaining that nuclear sciences have been used in the agricultural field to develop pest immune yielding foods through a radiation mutation technique.

Nuclear technology is also used in the health field, such as in the examination of kidney functions, in diagnosing cancers, and as a therapy.

"BATAN has also been successful in developing nuclear technology to preserve food," the minister added. Through a process of radiation technique, foods could be preserved for a period of 1.5 years.

BATAN Head Djarot S Wisnubroto said, meanwhile, that his agency continued to develop nuclear power for the good of the people. "We focus our research on food, health, medication, energy, industry and natural resources," noted Djarot.

He said that nuclear science and technology was very useful for people. But the abuse of nuclear power, such as in World War II, has led the public to have a poor image about nuclear technology.

Therefore, Minister Gusti Muhammad Hatta said the government would go ahead with its nuclear power plan.

"We have one small reactor in Serpong, Banten Province, but it is primarily used for research. It is time to build a reactor that actually generates electricity," the minister noted.

He added that Indonesia has been managing the operation of nuclear reactors for 30 years. "We also have several nuclear experts with international certification," the minister pointed out.

The expectation is that the new nuclear power plant will be located in Bangka Belitung (Babel) province, which is rich in uranium deposits. "The government is committed to continuously disseminating information about nuclear reactors and their development to the community," Gusti added.

It was reported some time ago that studies were in progress to build two nuclear power plants in Babel, with a capacity of 10,600 Megawatts. Nuclear power plants are expected to supply and meet 40 percent of the need for electricity in Sumatra, Java and Bali.

"The nuclear power plants are expected to become operational by 2025 or 2030 and, hopefully, they will meet 40 percent of the electricity need in Sumatra, Java and Bali," said Governor of Bangka Belitung Province Ekon Maulana Ali.

According to plan, the government will build two nuclear power plants with a combined capacity of 10,600 MW. One will be built in West Bangka district with a capacity of 10,000 MW and another one in Permis, South Bangka, with a capacity of 600 MW.

"The central government hopes that by 2013-2015 the preparatory and planning stages would have been completed. If the site test results show that it is feasible and appropriate for nuclear power plant construction, then the government would continue the project," he said.

However, the governor was sure that the project would go on. "The plan to build nuclear plants in South and West Bangka to generate electricity would be implemented," he said.

He further said the nuclear power plant construction plan was a central government policy which had been included in its master plan, designed to accelerate and expand the nations development.

He said that the government intended to develop a nuclear power plant as another source for electricity to meet its national need for power supplies amid depleting oil and gas reserves. Fuel reserves from fossil fuels, such as coal, oil and gas, were now being depleted because they were not only used at home, but also exported in large volumes.

"Hydropower sources are also declining because of weather anomalies and environmental damage," he said.

Therefore, alternative energy, nuclear in particular, needs to be developed to meet the high need for electricity, yet he admitted that the construction of a nuclear plant would take a long time, as the government was still in the process of surveying it and carrying out site tests in Babel.

He said that for the construction of one plant with a capacity of one gigawatt, funds of Rp35 trillion were needed.

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