Asian Development Bank retains Mott MacDonald on Indonesia wind-farm project

The Asian Development Bank has commissioned Mott MacDonald to provide lender’s technical due diligence for the ‘Tolo 1’ project in South Sulawesi, Indonesia. The project recently announced its financial close, with production projected for the first half of this year.

As the world shifts toward greater renewable energy production, wind-farms are increasingly competitive. The offshore variety has a number of benefits, including lower profiles and higher peak loads, although they also tend to have higher – but rapidly decreasing – prices. Onshore wind meanwhile is relatively cheap, being competitive with almost every form of energy production.

One of the latest onshore wind-farm developments is the ‘Tolo 1’ project in South Sulawesi, Indonesia. The project will see the installation of twenty 3.6 MW Siemens Gamesa turbines, for a total production capacity of around 72 MW, sufficient for around 149,000 households.

The project is being developed by Asia Pacific energy giant Equis Energy, which has 3.7 GW of Asian renewable energy generation assets financed throughout the region. The project was funded by the Asian Development Bank, which had commissioned Mott MacDonald as the technical, environmental and social advisor during the financing stage of its development.The firm’s work covered a range of issues, including everything from reviewing project participant track records through to construction and operational plans, grid integration study, and energy yield assessment. While the project has recently achieved financial close, Mott MacDonald will stay on to provide its financers with construction and operations monitoring services as part of an on-going role on the project, with its completion date set for the first half of this year.

Robin Ingram, Mott MacDonald’s project manager, said; “The Tolo 1 wind farm is one of two independent power producer-led wind farms currently under construction in Indonesia. We’ve advised the lenders on both schemes, which has helped us gain a greater understanding of the country’s market and the challenges that come with it for project implementation. Tolo 1 reaching financial close is another major milestone for Indonesia’s wind industry and aligns with the country’s ambitious plans for greater renewable energy integration going forward.”

David Russell, CEO of Equis Energy, said of the firm’s role in the project more widely; “Indonesia is set for a period of rapid, sustained growth in energy demand. Equis is committed to leveraging our experience and expertise in Indonesia to support these government initiatives and local community development.”

The UK-founded Mott Macdonald operates globally in the core sectors of advisory, built environment, energy, transportation and water firm, with regional bases in China, Hong Kong, Japan, Malaysia, Singapore, Indonesia, Thailand and Taiwan among its 180 principal offices worldwide. Recently, the firm announced a strategic collaboration agreement with the energy and infrastructure design and construction company China Gezhouba International Engineering.