From correspondents in Delhi, India, 07:00 PM IST

Indonesia's power expansion programmes offer Indian companies a good investment opportunity, according to Purnomo Yusgiantoro, the South-east Asian country's energy and mineral resources minister.

Indonesia is set to launch 10,000 MW accelerated power expansion programme - its second - aimed at beefing up electricity generation from new and renewable energy sources, Yusgiantoro told a business meet here Monday.

'More than 50 percent of electricity in the programme is proposed to be generated by independent power producers (IPPs),' he said, adding that this offered a good opportunity for Indian companies to participate in renewable energy projects.

'While the first 10,000 MW accelerated programme was based on coal fired-stations, the country proposes to generate 48 percent of its new power from geothermal sources, 14 percent from natural gas, 12 percent from hydro and 26 percent from coal,' Yusgiantoro said.

He also maintained there was growing interest between Indonesian and Indian companies to intensify cooperation in energy and minerals sectors.

Under a strategic partnership agreement, India and Indonesia have set a two-way trade target of $10 billion by 2010.

(Staff Writer, © IANS)