Malaysian, Indonesian Energy Ministers Hold Energy Cooperation Talks

PUTRAJAYA (Malaysia), Jan 22 (Bernama) -- Malaysian and Indonesian energy ministers held talks on a bilateral energy collaboration here Thursday, culminating on the possibility of signing an energy cooperation arrangement. Indonesian Minister of Energy and Mineral Resources Dr Sudirman Said and Malaysian Energy, Green Technology and Water Minister Dr Maximus Ongkili also deliberated on the setting up a technical committee to expedite the implementation of the transmission projects between Sumatra and Peninsular Malaysia, and between Tarakan, Kalimantan and Tawau, Sabah. They also touched on cooperation under ASEAN Power Grid, especially specific projects pertaining to Indonesia’s Perusahaan Listrik Negara and Tenaga Nasional Bhd's joint project for the Sumatra submarine cable link between Sumatra and Melaka. Sudirman earlier called on Ongkili at the latter's office here before holding the discussion, the Energy, Green Technology and Water Ministry said in a statement. Other matters raised included the proposed grid between Tarakan in Kalimantan to Tawau, as well as the Sarawak-West Kalimantan grid which was commissioned Wednesday. At the outset, the amount of power supplied from the Sarawak-Kalimantan link is 20MW and eventually increases to 200MW based on its design capacity, it said. Sudirman, who is on a two-day visit to Malaysia, invited Ongkili to participate in the forthcoming Bali Clean Energy Forum in Bali on Feb 10 and 11. The Indonesian minister also visited the Sustainable Energy Development Agency and Tenaga Nasional Bhd. -- BERNAMA