<p>Electric Power Development, Adaro Energy and Itochu Corp. will delay the start of a $4 billion coal-fired plant in Central Java due to an extended environmental assessment and protests by local residents, said three people with direct knowledge of the project.</p><p>The three companies expect financing for the project will be pushed back at least one year, delaying the start up of the plant by 12 months to the end of 2017, two of the people said, declining to be identified because the information is not public.</p><p>On Oct. 6 last year, the group said the 2,000-megawatt coal-fired plant, one of Asia's biggest, would start generating electricity in Central Java in late 2016. The delay is a set back for the Indonesian government, which laid out plans to boost power capacity to meet rising demand in Southeast Asia's biggest economy.</p><p>The companies are seeking about $3 billion, or 75 percent of the project costs, from banks, including Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corp. and the state-run Japan Bank for International Cooperation, claimed the insiders.</p><p><a href="http://www.thejakartaglobe.com/business/japan-indonesia-team-delay-4b-central-java-plant/549615">Keep reading...</a></p>