The National Nuclear Energy Agency wants the Indonesian government to issue a presidential decree which stipulates the construction of a nuclear power plant for operation by 2017, according to local media on Thursday.
The decree would provide certainty concerning the construction of the planned nuclear power plant in the Muria Peninsula in Central Java, said the agency.
"We've been waiting for the construction of the plant to begin for years. I hope the government can issue a decree saying 'yes, the construction can start,'" head of the agency Hudi Hastowo was quoted by newspaper The Jakarta Post as saying.
"We believe, based on our safety analysis, that the nuclear plant must and will be safe; that's among the requirements to get permission to start its construction," Hudi said.
He said the agency had years of experience handling nuclear energy with its three research-scale nuclear reactors in Serpong (Banten), Bandung (West Java) and Yogyakarta, adding there had never been any problems related to leakage of radioactive materials.
"In fact, our nuclear reactor in Serpong became a reference for many countries when it first started operating in 1987," said Hudi.
He said Indonesia eventually would need a nuclear plant because oil supplies would continue to dwindle and other energy sources were not yet reliable.
President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono announced last year the government planned to start building a nuclear power plant in 2010for operation by 2016.
The plan has met resistance from residents near the planned construction site, as well as from environmental groups.
Source: Xinhua
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