Mataram, West Nusa Tenggara (ANTARA) – The West Nusa Tenggara Provincial Government said a feasibility study is needed for a proposed clean energy supergrid linking the Lesser Sunda Islands, as the project requires major undersea transmission infrastructure.West Nusa Tenggara Energy and Mineral Resources Office Head Samsudin said the study followed challenges to the province’s plan to build a wide-area electricity transmission network.“Our consultations with the Energy Ministry’s Directorate General of Electricity showed that becoming a supergrid is not easy because it requires undersea transmission networks,” he said on Sunday.Samsudin said the project would require large-scale infrastructure, including subsea electricity cables across the Lombok Strait connecting West Nusa Tenggara and Bali.The central government estimates the undersea power cable network supplying clean energy may only become economically feasible between 2031 and 2033.According to Samsudin, the feasibility study will assess whether the interconnection project can be accelerated ahead of the government’s current timeline.The study will also calculate West Nusa Tenggara’s renewable energy potential, considered essential for becoming a clean energy hub in central Indonesia.The province’s renewable energy resources include hydropower, solar, wind, ocean currents, waste, biomass and geothermal energy.The provincial Energy Office said renewable energy currently accounts for 25 percent of West Nusa Tenggara’s energy mix, above the national average of 15.75 percent.Indonesia’s national installed renewable energy capacity currently stands at 15,630 megawatts (MW), according to the ministry’s data.West Nusa Tenggara’s installed renewable power capacity includes 21.6 MW of on-grid solar plants, 26.8 MW of off-grid solar plants operated by mining companies, and 18.5 MW of micro-hydro plants.