Over the past years we have mentioned on several occasions that the electric vehicle is the automotive industry’s future thanks to three key inter-related circumstances: (1) recent rapid technological developments that allow the electric vehicle battery to be more energy efficient, (2) the world’s eagerness to move away from fossil fuels toward renewable energy, and (3) rising political support for the development of an efficient and conducive regulatory ecosystem for the electric vehicle industry.

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Considering Indonesia is committed to the development of renewable energy in a bid to cut the country’s greenhouse gas emissions, while at the same time reducing its traditional dependence on fossil fuels such as coal and (mainly imported) diesel in terms of the energy supply, biomass is one of the options that can offer a solution.

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Biodiesel, which is a form of diesel fuel that is derived from plants or animals (in the case of Indonesia it mainly uses fatty acid methyl ether, FAME, which is derived from palm oil), has been on the political agenda of Indonesia since the 1990s when the first (in-depth) research was conducted by a number of state agencies.

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Despite several persistent challenges, geothermal energy remains a very interesting (and relatively environmentally friendly) power source for Indonesia. It is estimated that Indonesia is home to 40 percent of total global geothermal energy potential. But as impressive as that sounds, the country only uses a fraction of the potential. So, let’s take a look at recent developments in terms of geothermal power in Indonesia.

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The latest research report of Indonesia Investments focuses on the energy sector of Indonesia. The energy sector is a crucial sector because without energy it is impossible to pursue economic and social development.

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Indonesian President Joko Widodo inaugurated the country's first wind turbine power plant in Sidrap (South Sulawesi) on Monday (02/07). This plant, which has a total capacity of 75 MW, consists of 30 wind turbine generators (which are the electrical machines used to generate the electricity).

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Indonesia has now overtaken the Philippines in terms of geothermal power capacity. At the end of Q1-2018 Indonesia's installed geothermal power capacity reached 1,925 MW, higher than the 1,868 MW capacity of the Philippines. Moreover, by the end of 2018, Indonesia is expected to see its geothermal power capacity rise to 2,058 MW. However, Indonesia is still far away from becoming the world's biggest geothermal power producer. Capacity of the USA currently stands at 3,591 MW, hence leading by a distance.

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The Indonesian government aims to add 250 MW to the nation's installed geothermal power plants' production capacity in 2018. Based on data from Indonesia's Energy and Mineral Resources Ministry, Indonesia's geothermal power capacity stood at 1,808.5 MW at the end of 2017, below the government's target of 1,858.5 MW. Although the production figure is rising, Indonesia only taps 10.3 percent of its geothermal potential.

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Good news for supporters of renewable energy. The Sarulla geothermal power plant, located in Tapanuli (North Sumatra), now has two units in the commercial operation stage, hence the power plant's total capacity has increased to 220 Megawatt (MW). The second unit of the plant commenced commercial production earlier this week.

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Indonesia's push for usage of renewable energy sources, particularly geothermal energy, at the expense of usage of fossil fuels (such as oil or coal) has experienced a setback as there has been an impasse between state-owned electricity company Perusahaan Listrik Negara (PLN) and Pertamina Geothermal Energy (PGE), a subsidiary of state-owned energy company Pertamina regarding the renewal of their power purchase deal for electricity generated by PGE's Lahendong and Kamojang plants. The existing deal expires at the end of the year.

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On 24 February 2023 Pertamina Geothermal Energy made its trading debut on the Indonesia Stock Exchange (IDX) after concluding its initial public offering (IPO) – in which it sold 10.35 billion shares (which is equivalent to 25 percent of its enlarged share capital, including a 10 percent free float on the IDX) at an offering price of IDR 875 per share.

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Subscribers may have noticed that over the past couple of months, perhaps even the past half year, we devoted one article per month to the topic of renewable energy. And, it is a combination of factors that motivates this decision.

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In March 2022 Indonesia’s fully state-owned electricity company Perusahaan Listrik Negara (PLN) announced that it decided to team up with the French Development Agency (Agence Française de Développement), which is a public financial institution that is focused on implementing policies defined by the French Government with the aim to fight poverty and promote sustainable development, to jointly develop a wind energy plant with a capacity of 200 megawatt (MW) in Pandeglang (in Banten). This project is called the Banten Wind Farm Power Development.

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Energy is certainly the ‘thing’ to watch in the years, well decades, ahead. Amid heavy political pressures from the West, the world is heading for an unprecedented energy transition in which fossil fuels are going to be replaced by renewable energy sources. This is certainly great news for the environment (but whether the energy transition can ease, let alone stop, climate change – which is cited as the goal of this transition – seems iffy though).

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When writing this introduction, the 2021 United Nations Climate Change Conference (also known as COP26) had just started in Glasgow (Scotland). Indonesian President Joko Widodo is among the delegates who is slated to speech about the importance of preventing – and adapting to – climate change, and to seek ways to obtain climate financing as Indonesia is unable to finance the huge and costly energy transition by itself.

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The Energy and Mineral Resources Ministry of Indonesia has recently been making efforts to encourage the development of solar energy around this vast Archipelago. On 20 August 2021 it issued Energy and Mineral Resources Ministry Regulation No. 26 of 2021 on Solar Rooftop Connected to the Grid of Power Supply Business License for Public Interest Holders (henceforth: Regulation 26/2021).

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As Indonesia is increasingly focusing on renewable energy sources, the potential of geothermal power in Indonesia is usually in the spotlight. However, the potential of ocean thermal energy conversion (OTEC) is seldom mentioned, while it is estimated that Indonesia's OTEC potential is around 41,000 megawatt (MW), among the biggest worldwide.

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Indonesian President Joko Widodo (often called Jokowi) emphasized that the government of Indonesia needs to boost development of renewable energy. Although Indonesia contains huge potential for renewable energy (particularly geothermal energy), the share of renewable energy in Indonesia’s total energy use currently stands at around 5 percent only, the remainder being fossil energy. By providing incentives, attractive tariffs and an easier licensing and registration process, the government can generate more investment in this sector.

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The Indonesian government plans to tender 25 new geothermal development sites with a total combined capacity of 1,225 megawatt (MW). These 25 projects will require a total of USD $4.6 billion worth of investments and help to achieve the government’s target to raise the portion of geothermal energy in the country’s energy mix to 7.1 percent by 2025. These 25 projects are in addition to the 31 geothermal development projects that are currently being constructed and which should be operational by 2020.

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The new Joko Widodo-led government aims to triple domestic geothermal power production within the next five years in an effort to meet ever-increasing power demand in the world’s fourth-most populous country and to shift to more environment friendly energy sources (rather than the over-reliance on fossil fuels such as oil and coal). Although Indonesia is estimated to contain the world's largest geothermal energy reserves, the country only uses about four percent of its geothermal capacity potential.

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