In the last week, Indika Energy executives traveled to India to look at some of the technological solutions the company could offer to the Indonesian market, including solar power generation, battery storage and electronic vehicle (EV) charging solutions.

Indika Energy CEO Azis Armand said that new and better technologies on solar power generation, battery storage and EV charging solutions would be key to helping the company shift from its reliance on coal to generate revenue.

“For this solar panel technology, after partnering with [Fourth Partner] for one year, we can book orders close to 50 megawatts-peak [MWp]. In the next three or four years, we expect to reach 500 MWp,” Azis told select media invited to the five-day Indika Energy press junket, including The Jakarta Post.

Azis added that some of the Fourth Partner solutions offered through EMITS could fulfill the company’s ambitious target to generate 50 percent of revenue by 2030 from its non-coal businesses, such as gold mining and EVs.

Indika is the country’s third biggest coal producer through subsidiary PT Kideco Jaya Agung, and its non-coal businesses currently contribute just 12 percent of revenue.

Meanwhile, joint venture EMITS has set a target of winning contracts to install up to 100 MWp capacity in solar panels by 2022 and 500 MWp by 2025.

Other solutions from Fourth Partner are likely to be key to pushing Indika’s EV ambitions through its electric car manufacturing business, PT Ilectra Motor Group. Fourth Partner has set up 30 fast-charging stations to date in several prime locations across India by partnering with Karnataka-based Lithium Urban Technologies.

In August, Ilectra Motor launched the mass production of a fully electric motorcycle, Alva One, in Indonesia.

Alva One, which is classified as a battery electric vehicle (BEV), will be produced at a manufacturing plant with an annual output of 100,000 vehicles located in Cikarang, West Java.

EMITS executive director Yovie Priadi said the firm had secured a license to set up solar power generation projects in 2023.

“These projects are located mostly outside of Java, where industries and businesses have problems getting electricity from the existing grid,” he said.

Yovie added that EMITS would develop projects in 2023 with an output capacity of between 80 MWp and 100 MWp, including one project for Sampoerna Kayoe, several projects for state electricity company PLN and one for Indika subsidiary Petrosea.

He also expressed optimism that orders to EMITS would increase significantly if PLN decided to kick-start its retirement program for diesel-fueled power plants, or “de-dieselization” program, very soon.

PLN has delayed the project’s commencement from this year to next.

Separately, Fourth Partner cofounder and executive director Vivek Subramanian said India and Indonesia shared many characteristics, and that the latter could learn from India’s lessons.

“Both governments have issued some major policies on shifting to renewables. In India, there has also been some push and pull on this issue, but so far the progress has been very good,” Subramanian said.

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