The Biggest Dam In Indonesia Is Completed, August Inaugurated By Jokowi

Photo: Antara

JAKARTA The Cipanas Dam in Sumedang, West Java is one of the National Strategic Projects (PSN) whose construction process has been completed and will soon be inaugurated in August 2023.

"The Imsounding of the Cipanas Dam yesterday was carried out on May 19, 2023, and the inauguration plan is in August 2023 by the President of the Republic of Indonesia Jokowi," said Head of the Cimanuk River Basin Center (BBWS) Cisanggarung, Ministry of PUPR Dwi Agus Kuncoro, Antara, Sunday, June 25.

Impounding is the initial filling of the dam. Dwi said that dam filling is planned to be calculated for two times the rainy season. Thus, the impacting process is expected to be completed by the end of 2024 or early 2025. The full operation is planned to take place at the end of 2025.

"Next year we will take care of the OP certification. So, if possible, it is planned that the dam will operate at the end of 2025," said Dwi.

The Cipanas Dam is the third largest dam in Indonesia to be built in the last 10 years.

The dam is located in Cibuluh Village, Ujung Jaya District, Sumedang Regency, West Java Province.

With a total inundation area of 1,315 hectares and a total volume of 250 million m3, the dam can be used as a water reservoir as a flood control for the Indramayu region and its surroundings. Cipanas is predicted to be able to reduce the flood discharge by 487.75 m3/second.

In addition, the Cipanas Dam will also meet the water needs for 9,273 hectares of rice fields through irrigation channels and have a potential for minihydro power plants (PLTMH) of 3,0 megawatts and also development in the tourism sector.

Deputy for Regional and Spatial Planning Coordination of the Coordinating Ministry for Economic Affairs and Chair of the Committee for the Acceleration of Priority Infrastructure Provision (KPPIP) Wahyu Utomo said that the construction of the Cipanas Dam is expected to provide benefits to the environment around the dam.

"With the completion of the impacting process, we will be able to irrigate more rice fields and can be a source of raw water for drinking water and industrial areas," Wahyu explained.