Hydroelectric Power in Indonesia

Introduction
Hydroelectric power, also called hydroelectricity is one of renewable resources that provides
about 16 percents of the world’s electricity. It uses the energy from running water to generate
electricity without reducing its quantity. This form of energy has become a clean, safe,
reliable and inexpensive source power. Moreover, this energy has played an important part in
electricity generation in the world nowadays.

Over two thousand years ago, people has used hydropower to grind flour and do other tasks
such as saw wood and power textile mills and manufacturing plants. Then it became one of
energy sources for the Industrial Revolution in the late 18 th century using hydraulic power.
Since the demand arising, in the late 19 th century, the first hydroelectric power scheme was
developed by William Armstrong, and in 1882, the first Edison hydroelectric power station
began operating with 12,5 kilowatts as an output. After that, many small hydroelectric power
stations were built at the beginning of the 20th century, and throughout that century.

Like community all over the world, people in Indonesia willing to get electricity to fulfill
their life. Indonesia, as an archipelago country, has many island that geographically isolated
from the major islands. The National Electricity Company, or PLN, has not been able to meet
100% of the electricity needs of the community. It is due to several regions that cannot be
reached by the electricity supply from PLN because of the geographical conditions of the
region. Utilizing the potential of natural resources as an energy can be the solution for this
issue. Hydropower can be harnessed to produce electricity since Indonesia is an archipelago
state. However, Indonesia faces some issues relate with hydropower.

This paper provides an overview of the hydroelectric power’s role in Indonesia, and its
development to support rural electricity, including the constraints and limitations faced for
procuring electricity. To do so, literatures related to the overview of hydropower plants will
be used.

A snapshots of hydropower plants

There are classifications in hydropower plants depending on the operation and the type of
flow. In this paper, four types of hydropower plants will be explained, which are storage
power plants, pumped-storage power plants, run-of-river power plants, and tidal power
plants. They also can be classified by their sizes, which varies from a few kilowatts to several
gigawatts.

Storage power plants use a dam to raise the water level of the river so that it can make water
fall, and then control the river so it can create falling water and then control the flow of water.
The hydroelectric dam converts the potential energy stored into mechanical energy to upright
a turbine. Generator connected to the turbine changes the mechanical energy into electrical
energy. Those systems generally use more electricity to pump water to the upper water
storage reservoirs than they produce with the stored water. 

Pumped-storage power plants use hydroelectric storage system where water is pumped to a
upper storage reservoir and then is released to power hydro turbine located below the
reservoir. When electricity demand is relatively low, water is pumped to storage, and release
the stored water to generate electricity during peak electricity demand.

On the other hand, there are generating methods like “dam-less” like run-of-river, also called
as ‘diversion’. Unlike the dam method, the diversion uses the natural flow rate of water
instead of falling water from large distance. It can produce base load energy, but can not
adjust the quantity of electricity required. In this system, water from a flowing river is
diverted and guided down to channel or penstock, leading to a generating house.

Tidal energy is also different from dam method. It refers to generate electricity from the flow
of the tides. The movement of tides push a turbine to generate electricity; and the turbines are
like wind turbines, but they are positioned underwater. Tidal can be captured by different
ways such as tidal streams, barrages, and lagoons. In the future, hydropower technologies
may include devices from tidal, and also can harness energy from waves, ocean currents, and
marine thermal gradients. Unlike other renewable energy sources, hydropower is not
intermitten, it makes hydropower very appealing.

Hydropower facilities based on its size divided into large hydro, small hydro, micro hydro,
and pico hydro. The capacity range of large hydroelectric facilities over a few hundred
megawatt power considered large facilities. Hydropower facilities may be termed small
hydropower if can generate up to 10 megawatts (MW). This range can be increased between
25 MW and 30 MW in United States. Since small hydro projects harness minimal reservoirs
and civil construction work, they may be built in isolated areas. For micro hydro projects,
they usually generate up 100 kW of power. They also can provide electricity in isolated home
or small community. Several developing countries adopt this type of installations to provide
energy without purchase of fuel.

There are several benefits that exist as a result of using hydroelectric power to the
environtment, economy, and social. Hydroelectricity uses the energy of running water, no
matter what their operations or their sizes, is fit the concept of renewable energy source. This
power plants can immediately respond to fluctuations in the demand for electricity. Their
flexibility and storage capacity make them more efficient and economical. Another benefit to
hydropower is can still be in operation 50 to 100 years and requires very little labour with
low maintenance costs.

Compared to the combustion of fossil fuels, hydroelectric power emitting less GHG than
power plants driven by gas, coal or oil, hydroelectricity can help retard global warming.
Although only 33% of the available hydroelectric potential has been developed, today
hydroelectricity prevents the emission of GHG corresponding to the burning of 4.4 million
barrels of petroleum per day worldwide. Hydroelectric power plants don't release pollutants
into the air. They very frequently substitute the generation from fossil fuels, thus reducing
acid rain and smog. In addition to this, hydroelectric developments don't generate toxic by-
products.

Hydroelectric power also have impacts on the environtment, and will vary depending on scale
and technology that used. The manipulation of river flows can cause a significant number of
environmental impacts. Damming interrupts the flow of rivers and can harm local
ecosystems, and building large dams and reservoirs often involves displacing people and
wildlife. The loss of land is often exacerbated by habitat fragmentation of surrounding areas
caused by the reservoir.

The impacts of hydropwer projects on land can be significant too. The construction of roads
and transmission corridors in run-of-river can lead to increased erosion into the river,
increasing sedimentation and altering the river's fragile ecosystem. The roads themselves can
fragment and split animal habitats. Bears in particular are known to avoid roads, so
construction of a network of roads near a river may limit their access to the river and the fish
within that constitute an important part of their diet.

Additionally, the initial cost to develop and build a project can be very high. Large-scale
hydro electricity projects require significant investment in order for them to be built and even
then there can be other permissions that are required which can slow can and even halt
development.

Like any form of generation, hydroelectric power also dependent on the fuel for production.
While certain methods like tidal power are extremely predictable, river run hydro power
depends on a constant flow of water which relies on rainfall.

Mini/Micro Hydropower in the remote areas

OUTLINE

I. Introduction
A. General statement
1. A brief overview about hydroelectricity
2. Hydroelectricity from past to the present
3. Indonesia as an archipelago state
B. The purpose of this essay
II. A snapshot of hydropower plants
A. Classification of hydropower in terms of operation and sizes
B. The implication of hydropower on environment, economy, and social life
III. Mini/Micro Hydropower in the remote areas
A. Problems with Micro Hydro
B. Limitation of Micro Hydro
C. The Appropriateness of Micro hydro
IV. Hydropower situation in Indonesia
A. Existing situation
B. Support from the government
1. Policies
2. Infrastructures
V. Conclussion/Discussion

Hydroelectric power is one of renewable resources that provides about 16 percents of the
world’s electricity. There are four major type of methods for generating: dams, pumped
storage, run-of-river, and tidal power. The conventional method is using a dam to raise the
water level of the river so it can create falling water and then control the flow of water.

1. Modify: … the river so that it can make water fall, and then control

The hydroelectric dam converts the potential energy stored to mechanical energy to upright a
turbine. Generator that is connected to the turbine, changes the mechanical energy into
electrical energy. In other generating methods, they can be “dam-less”.

Run-of-river, also called as diversion, compared to dam method is that the diversion uses the
natural flow rate of water instead of falling water from large distance. It can produce base
load energy but can not adjust the quantity of electricity that required. In this system, water
from a flowing river is diverted and guided down to channel or penstock, leads to a
generating house. Tidal energy is also different from dam method, it refers to generate
electricity from the flow of the tides. The movement of tides push a turbine to generate
electricity; and the turbines are like wind turbines but they are positioned underwater.

2. What’s the purpose of the writing? This seems goes to the body, not in the
introduction. You can explain Hydroelectric power in the body later.

3. Write the aim of your essay and justify your research. So, will your essay examine or
present the method?

4. What are you going to do with Hydroelectric power, and then talk about what your
essay contains and how you will develop the structure of the paper in the
introduction.

 Please send the all revised essay next time.