Indonesia holds the world’s 2nd largest reserves of geothermal power with the world’s 4th largest population. Raser Technologies, Inc. was chosen to develop, in conjunction with Indonesia Power, over 100,000 acres of geothermal resources to build an estimated 110 MW of geothermal power in West Java, Indonesia’s most populated island.

The 412 square kilometers (159 square miles) concession surrounds the Tangkuban Perahu volcano, approximately 15 miles (24 km) north of Bandung, the capitol of the West Java Province. Bandung has over 2 million people and is the largest city in the West Java Province, which has over 35 million residents.

Indonesia Power is a unit of PT Perusahaan Listrik Negara (PLN), Indonesia’s state owned utility and has 127 power plants producing 8,888 MW of power. Indonesia Power will hold 51 percent ownership in the venture with Raser, while Raser will own 49 percent. It is expected that the capital to fund the development of the project in West Java will be independently financed.

PLN is expected to purchase the geothermal power in an effort to reduce its exposure to rising oil prices. Due to growth and rising fuel costs, Indonesia is experiencing an energy crisis and is actively pursuing a plan to grow geothermal power.

Indonesia has a stated goal to more than double its current 838 MW of geothermal power output by 2010 and to further grow its geothermal power generation to 9,500 MW by 2025. Outside of the United States, Indonesia has the world’s largest geothermal power generation potential.

“We have studied this resource along with The Energy and Geoscience Institute and believe that it could potentially support 200 MW to 300 MW of clean renewable power,” stated Michael Hayter, Raser’s Director of Geothermal Development. “We anticipate that the initial phase of development will be a rapidly deployed binary plant with additional phases potentially including larger flash geothermal plants.”

“We are excited about working with Indonesia Power to expand our geothermal development,” stated Brent M. Cook, Raser’s chief executive officer. “We recognize their expertise in geothermal power operations and applaud their commitment to further develop Indonesia’s significant geothermal resources. We are honored to be their partner and look forward to working with them closely over the next several years.”