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RE100: Clean power initiative struggles to catch on in Indonesia
Can clean power pledges from private corporations help the country achieve its carbon targets while renewable energy in the country is hard to come by?
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Power from above: A worker inspects solar panels on the roof of the Energy and Mineral Resources Ministry’s Electricity Directorate General in Jakarta in this undated photo. (JP/Dhoni Setiawan)
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global initiative that encourages corporations to commit to using only renewable energy is hoped to boost renewables in Indonesia’s energy mix, but experts say its success hinges on the government creating an enabling environment.
Initiated by US-based NGO The Climate Group, RE100 has seen constant growth in its worldwide membership over the past years, according to a report it issued last year.
In 2019, 5 percent of RE100 companies had operations in Indonesia, data compiled by the Institute for Essential Services Reform (IESR) shows.
Fabby Tumiwa, chairman of the Indonesian Solar Energy Association (AESI), said enabling off-site renewable energy supply through innovative schemes, such as power wheeling or direct power purchase agreements (PPA), was key to ensuring a renewable energy supply for RE100 companies.
“The government must ensure that companies have the easiest possible access to renewable energy at a competitive price,” he said on Thursday, adding that a renewable energy supply for commercial and industrial customers had to be ensured.
Flexible access to renewable energy would also attract more RE100 companies to invest in or expand to Indonesia, he added.
In Indonesia, RE100 signatories, including Coca-Cola, Danone and Unilever, have pledged to use renewable energy exclusively by 2030.
