Kalimantan local administrations are waiting for the central government to approve a plan to build a nuclear power plant in the region, a local official said. He said the local administrations had conducted the necessary feasibility studies to back their ambitious plan.
“We believe that a nuclear power plant is the ideal answer to our energy problems. We have the necessary resources and supporting social infrastructure. Thus, all we need now is the political endorsement,” Fathan A.R, head of the West Kalimantan Development Planning Board (Bappeda), told journalists Tuesday.
He said the local administration had cooperated with the National Atomic Energy Agency (Batan) in assessing the amount of uranium that could be enriched for the purpose. He said an enormous amount of uranium, approximately around 900 tons, had been found in Melawi regency, West Kalimantan.
He said Kalimantan had all the benefits, such as not being located in the Ring of Fire and the low density level of the population.
“All local administrations could use it to enhance the development process so that the people would no longer have to wait in the dark without electricity. Better infrastructure could lead to a better economy,” he said.
To date, regardless of the coal and oil found in several spots, most regions in Kalimantan are still considered poor due to the lack of basic infrastructure like roads, electricity and clean water as well as difficulties in food distribution.
Source..
