The handing over ceremony of the 102 MW power plant for PT Antam Tbk took place in Jakarta, Indonesia on 26th April 2005. Wärtsilä Corporation was awarded the contract to supply a power plant for Antam’s mine and ferronickel smelting plant at Pomalaa in South Sulawesi in 2003. Phase One (51 MW) of the power plant was handed over on 21st January 2005 and Phase Two (51 MW) was handed over on 1st April 2005.
The diesel power plant, supplied under an Engineering, Procurement and Construction (EPC) contract, has six 17 MWe generating sets, each powered by a Wärtsilä 18V46 diesel engine. Presently the plant runs on heavy fuel oil and can be converted to run on natural gas at a later stage. The capability of converting the Wärtsilä engines to run on natural gas was an important factor in the choice of Wärtsilä for the new plant.
Load fluctuations are a critical factor in this kind of application. The ability of the Wärtsilä power plant to withstand large load cycles and fluctuations at the site also played a major role in Antam’s choice of supplier.
The power plant is part of a major expansion project at the Pomalaa site. Antam currently operates two ferronickel smelters and work has begun on building a third smelter to reach an overall production capacity of 26,000 tons of nickel. The Pomalaa facility is not connected to a power transmission grid system. The power plant therefore independently supplies power for all the facility’s mining and smelter needs.
In June 2004, Antam gave Wärtsilä responsibility for operating and maintaining its power production operation at Pomalaa. The eleven-year operations and maintenance (O&M) contract also covers the mine’s existing 50 MW power plant, which will be used for stand-by and peaking purposes. The O&M contract frees Antam to concentrate on its core business and reduce operating costs.
The O&M contract is comprehensive in scope. It gives Wärtsilä 24/365 responsibility for the plant’s operation and maintenance, as well as performance guarantees covering availability, power output, fuel consumption and environmental control.