Jakarta. The Public Works and Housing Ministry will complete construction on eight major water dams in 2020 as part of the National Strategic Program.

Public Works and Housing Minister Basuki Hadimuljono said in a press release on Thursday Indonesia's water supply is more than adequate at 2.7 trillion cubic meters per year. A total of 691 billion cubic meters are used every year, with 222 billion cubic meters per year being pumped into homes, animal farms and fisheries and also used for irrigation. 

"We need water reservoirs to keep the water surplus. We collect water during the rainy season and pump it out of the reservoirs during the dry season. The dams and reservoirs are basically for water storage," Basuki said.

The eight dams to be completed in 2020 are located in Paselloreng in South Sulawesi, Ladongi in Southeast Sulawesi, Tapin in South Kalimantan, Way Sekampung in Lampung, Kuningan in West Java and three dams in East Java – Bendo in Ponorogo, Tukul in Pacitan and Gongseng in Bojonegoro.

Once the eight dams are completed, Indonesia will be able to store 408.89 million cubic meters of water every year.

The Paselloreng Dam was the first one to be completed this year. It occupies ​​1,892 hectares of land and has a capacity of 138 million cubic meters that can be used to irrigate 8,510 hectares of rice fields.

Construction on the dam was carried out by Wijaya Karya and Bumi Karsa in a Joint Operation (KSO) at a cost of Rp 753.4 billion ($55 million).

The Tukul Dam, which has a capacity of 8.68 million cubic meters to provide irrigation for 600 hectares of farmland and can pump raw water at a rate of 300 liters per second, is 76.2 percent complete.

Construction on the Tukul Dam began in 2013 with contractor Brantas Abipraya and will cost Rp 904 billion to complete.

The Gongseng Dam, where construction began in 2013, is now 76.03 percent complete. It will have a storage capacity of 22.43 million cubic meters. 

Bendo Dam, which will have a capacity of 43.11 million cubic meters, is 70.97 percent complete. Construction on the dam has been carried out jointly by Wijaya Karya, Hutama Karya, and Nindya Karya at a total cost of Rp 1.080 trillion.

Construction on the Ladongi Dam began in 2016 and is now 71.22 percent complete. The dam will have a capacity of 45.94 million cubic meters and be able to provide enough water to irrigate 3,604 hectares of rice fields. 

The Tapin Dam, which has a capacity of 56.77 million cubic meters, is 95 percent complete. Water from the dam will be used to irrigate 5,742 hectares of farmland in the Tapin District.

The Way Sekampung Dam will supply 68 million cubic meters of water per year to irrigate ​​55,373 hectares of farmland and another 17,334 hectares in the Rumbia Extension area. The dam is now 84.5 percent complete.

The 221-hectare Kuningan Dam, which will control water flow in the Cikaro River, will have a total capacity of 25.96 million cubic meters. Water from it will be used to irrigate 3,000 hectares of rice fields in Cileuweung, Kuningan District (1,000 hectares) and Jangkelok, Brebes District (​​2,000 hectares). The Kuningan Dam is now 97.5 percent complete.