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t the end of October 2011, a Russian business delegation led by Deputy Prime Minister Sergei Ivanov met with Coordinating Economic Minister Hatta Rajasa in Jakarta to discuss economic cooperation, including energy projects (oil and gas, coal transportation and hydroelectricity) between the two states. Earlier in the same year, ROSATOM (Russian Atomic Energy Corporation) offered Indonesia its capabilities to build a nuclear power plant.

Between the two meetings, Minister Rajasa paid an official visit to Russia and invited the giant country to take part in Indonesia’s Master Plan for Economic Development Acceleration and Expansion (MP3EI), where energy projects are prioritized.

Are the meetings a signal for closer energy cooperation between the two countries?

Russia is an energy superpower and the world’s largest producer of energy. It has the largest natural gas reserves and the second largest coal reserves. It is the world’s largest producer of oil. Its energy companies are among the world’s largest (Gazprom, Rosneft, SUEK, etc.). The red bear country is the major source for Europe’s imports of natural gas and oil.

The world’s first nuclear power plant began producing electricity in 1954 at Obninsk, Russia. Today, the country is operating 32 nuclear reactors with installed capacity of 23.1 GW, the fourth largest in the world. Russia ranks fifth among the world’s hydroelectricity producers and is developing its renewable energy potentials (peat, geothermal, wind, solar and tidal).

Indonesia, on the other hand, is a country where energy shortages occur in many parts of the archipelago. This country is not one with limited energy reserves, but it seems likely that Indonesia is not well prepared for making energy adequately available to meet its huge demand, which is expected to increase considerably in the near future.

The increasing population and rapid economic growth points to additional supply, but energy flows to thousand of islands across the country are largely constrained by a lack of infrastructure. Its fossil-fuel reserves (coal and natural gas) are being exploited to serve export markets rather than to secure domestic requirements. Access to energy is quite poor, particularly in rural villages and on small islands. Our per capita energy consumption is still among the lowest in ASEAN.

Facing shortages of human, financial and technology resources necessary for energy development, we have not yet established a clear energy diplomacy strategy. Who should be the partners to develop our energy resources, building energy infrastructure and meeting our energy demands, which according to the National Energy Council will increase by 3 fold by 2030 and 5 fold by 2050?

Many foreign companies are currently working on the exploration and exploitation of Indonesia’s energy reserves, but they rarely think of our long-term energy security. Most of their energy diplomacy strategies is purposed to secure their energy needs. Are we going to implement a similar strategy: To secure our future energy needs by importing them from foreign sources? Are we going to invest interest in energy exploration in foreign countries? Or will we prioritize building energy infrastructure progressively (for domestic electricity and natural gas transmission/distribution networks, for instance) and choose the right foreign partners for these?

Russia may offer a number of advantages. The red bear country has no interest in exploring foreign energy reserves and taking it out to its territories. Instead, it may propose its expertises, technology, financial, and energy education strengths.

Indonesia-Russia relation is unique. The two countries are geographically very far apart. They are very different, linguistically and culturally. Historically, however, we have had a long relationship.

Older Indonesians remember a number of hospitals, railway stations, sports stadiums and steel plants were built by Russia in and surrounding our capital city. Many young Indonesians in the old days were sent to Russia (then the Soviet Union) for study, including in energy fields. After passing through periods of “hate and miss”, our relationship improved. President Megawati visited Russia in April 2003. Former Russian president Vladimir Putin paid a visit to Indonesia in September 2007.

A wider range of energy cooperation projects, however, have to take into account Russia’s geopolitical energy strategies. So far the country focuses on exploiting its huge indigenous energy reserves, consumes them domestically and exports the rest mostly throughout Europe. Central Asians are also important partners for Russia’s export of energy. The world’s largest energy producer is making energy deals with China, which is home to the world’s greatest energy demand.

With ASEAN, Russia has only just begun developing an energy cooperation. The ASEAN-Russia Energy Cooperation Program 2010 – 2015 was adopted in July 2010, marking the parties’ readiness to cooperate in the development of renewable energy, energy infrastructure, nuclear energy and exploration of coal, oil and gas.

Indonesia might reap benefits by using the ASEAN-Russia energy cooperation umbrella. Indonesia and Russia have started talks on their bilateral energy cooperation. However, it seems too early to predict the magnitude and what direction energy cooperation between the two huge countries will be heading.

The writer is an energy policy analyst and author of A Mosaic of Indonesian Energy Policy book (IPB University Press, 2011)