MEM and GCube partner to bring first utility-scale wind farm to Indonesia

The Sidrap wind farm, located on a series of ridges in Northern South Sulawesi, will consist of 30 Gamesa turbines and is scheduled for completion in January 2018.

Modern Energy Management (MEM), a specialist in delivering project lifecycle certainty to renewable energy developers, financiers, and investors, will carry out marine warranty surveying (MWS) services at Indonesia’s first utility-scale wind project on behalf of GCube Underwriting. Under the terms of the agreement, MEM will provide risk-management services related to the offloading of turbine generator components for the 75-MW Sidrap Wind Farm.

GCube selected MEM for this work ahead of local survey companies due to the firm’s clean energy focus and expertise in the emerging Asian renewable energy markets. A key factor in the decision was ensuring the necessary depth of experience to comprehensively assess on-site and logistical risks, and prevent these leading to project delays.

While this process takes place, wind developers require the confidence of a secure and comprehensive marine warranty service to ensure that large parts and components arrive at the project site undamaged and on time.

“As Indonesia begins to develop in clean energy, investors need to have the confidence that their projects may be de-risked throughout the development timeline,” said Lars Lund, Director, MEM. “Deploying wind energy in remote regions requires a full understanding of the project risk profile. Our own development experience informed the survey work we carried out at Sidrap and will allow us to put procedures in place to best mitigate these risks.”

The site’s remote and challenging landscape poses unique logistical challenges for the construction team and will require components to be offloaded at a jetty specially-constructed for the project. MEM will oversee the components’ offloading before they are transported to the project site itself.

“GCube’s specialized expertise in renewable energy underwriting, coupled with MEM’s local knowledge of the Indonesian market, has enabled us to develop a detailed understanding of the risks related to offloading turbine components and transporting them across the country,” added Charlie Richardson, Senior Underwriter at GCube. “Partnering in this way will ensure comprehensive oversight of what was a technically and logistically challenging element in the Sidrap Wind Farm’s construction, helping the project to realise its full potential.”