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Mega electricity program will still rely on fossil fuels
The newest electricity procurement business plan (RUPTL) has revealed that the ambitious 35,000 megawatt (MW) program will remain overly reliant on coal and gas despite Indonesia’s commitment to decreasing carbon emissions
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The newest electricity procurement business plan (RUPTL) has revealed that the ambitious 35,000 megawatt (MW) program will remain overly reliant on coal and gas despite Indonesia’s commitment to decreasing carbon emissions.
According to the country’s Intended Nationally Determined Contributions, a national document submitted to the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) ahead of last year’s Paris climate talks or COP21, the government has a carbon emissions reduction target of 29 percent by 2030.
However, the latest RUPTL shows that only 2,906 MW, equal to a mere 8.1 percent of the 35,000 MW target, will be generated from renewable resources.
The 2,906 MW target consists of 725 MW from geothermal sources, 180 MW from wind power, 30 MW from biomass and 1,971 MW from hydro and micro hydro power plants.
A large portion of the target will still be generated by coal and natural gas. Although the latter is also a fossil fuel, gas is generally considered cleaner than other fossil fuels.
Independent power producers are expected to provide most of the electricity, while state-owned electricity company Perusahaan Listrik Negara (PLN) will only handle 10,569 MW.
The RUPTL states that the mega electricity project is needed to meet the needs of the nation’s 6.6
percent annual economic growth, with an electricity demand growth rate of 8.3 percent per year and an electrification ratio of 97 percent in 2019.
The RUPTL was signed by Energy and Mineral Resources Minister Sudirman Said last month and the program itself is expected to be fully realized in 2019.
Last year, more than half of electricity generation was fueled by coal. The rest was fueled by gas with 25.3 percent, diesel with 8.2 percent, hydropower plants with 5.9 percent and geothermal energy with 4 percent.
Data from PLN show that plants that commenced operations at the end of last month had a total capacity of 170 MW, around 1 percent of the program target.
Several other power plants that together will generate 8,150 MW are being constructed while others are still in various stages of development, such as procurement and planning.
Following the RUPTL endorsement, President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo called on PLN to also allow the private sector to have a greater role in the electricity procurement program, especially in terms of geothermal and micro hydro power generators.
Indonesia is estimated to have around 28 gigawatt (GW) of geothermal potentials and 75 GW in hydropower potentials.
Meanwhile, Golkar Party politician Satya W. Yudha defended the new RUPTL, saying that the new energy mix was an improvement of the original 35,000 MW program despite the small portion of renewable power.
“If you look at the previous program, all of the electricity would have been generated by coal. However, the RUPTL is a reflection of our determination to contribute to COP 21 and we must welcome it as a positive improvement,” said Satya, who is also a member of House of Representatives Commission VII that oversees energy.
He acknowledged that Indonesia must vastly increase its use of renewable resources as it would no longer be able to rely on fossil fuels in the long term.
The House recently approved the establishment of a national energy security fund with a starting budget of Rp 800 billion (US$60.83 million) to support all energy sectors. One of its goals is to help the country reach an energy portfolio consisting of 23 percent renewable energy by 2025.
“A state-owned company must also be established to handle the energy security funds,” Satya said.
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