• Beranda
  • Database
  • Akun
close× Call Us +0123456789
close×

RI pursues nuclear path to meet demand for low-carbon power

RI pursues nuclear path to meet demand for low-carbon power

Submitted by Windianingrum on Tue, 12/10/2024 - 10:36
Monday, December 9, 2024Sumber Informasi: TheJakartaPost.com

Indonesia aims to begin commercial operations of a small-scale nuclear power plant in 2032, seven years earlier than its initial target of 2039, as it seeks ways to meet domestic energy demand without abandoning its net-zero commitment under the Paris Agreement.

National electricity demand is expected to increase 50 percent by 2030 and then quintuple by 2060, posing a challenge for the new government of President Prabowo Subianto, which has pledged to phase out fossil energy sources within 15 years.

Southeast Asia’s largest economy, as of 2023, generated 67 percent of its power – excluding that from captive power plants – from coal and another 21 percent from gas and diesel, according to Thomas Hansmann, a partner at consultancy McKinsey & Company.

The Prabowo administration, which was installed in October, has announced plans to offer international investors opportunities to build plants in the country with a total renewable power capacity of 75 gigawatts (GW) over the next 15 years.

“If Indonesia is to maintain energy security while achieving net zero by 2060, it would mean expanding power generation capacity to over 400 GW, [with] 75 percent from renewable sources,” Hansmann said in a statement provided to The Jakarta Post on Saturday.

He was responding to a question about the possibility of Indonesia meeting its electricity demand in the next 15 years without tapping into nuclear power.

Hansmann also explained that the country’s transition from coal to low-carbon power while meeting demand growth would depend on the pace and scale of renewable energy investments, especially in baseload renewables, as well as the adoption of carbon mitigating technologies such as carbon capture and storage (CCS).

“Strengthening infrastructure including storage, like batteries, to manage renewable technologies’ intermittency, and improving grid interconnections to balance regional supply and demand dynamics will also be key enablers,” he said.

“Lastly, to further support the transition toward a low-carbon future, it is also important to manage demand growth.” Energy and Mineral Resources Ministry data show that in the first half of 2024, the country added a mere 217.73 megawatts (MW) to its installed renewable energy capacity, or 66.6 percent of the 326.91 MW annual target.

“Adding nuclear into the mix could be an option to phase out coal by 2040, but Indonesia could take a gradual approach to nuclear energy,” Dinita Setyawati, senior Southeast Asia electricity policy analyst at London-based energy think tank EMBER, told the Post on Wednesday.

She went on to say that microreactors could help address some of Indonesia’s energy supply challenges by providing a compact, low-emission energy source as a pilot project to identify regions for preparation.

Dinita noted that while microreactors could be part of a diversified energy strategy, they would not contribute significantly to replacing the current energy mix, which was still dominated by fossil fuels. “Indonesia needs to consider complementary solutions, like adding solar and wind energy into the mix,” she said, implying that stakeholders should prioritize issues related to renewable energy development.

Energy Minister Bahlil Lahadalia said the government would push for the deployment of nuclear power plants to significantly increase the capacity of so-called new and renewable sources in the national energy mix.

The National Energy Council (DEN) would therefore focus on establishing a nuclear energy program implementation committee (KP2EN) to help achieve the government’s target of commercializing nuclear power in 2032, he said, albeit on a small scale.

Bahlil, who also chairs the council’s daily committee, told a meeting with House of Representatives Commission XII on Dec. 2 that the government was drafting a presidential regulation to set up the KP2EN.

“The draft for the KP2EN is being prepared [and the DEN] has had briefings [on] building nuclear power plants to support the energy transition efforts to achieve net-zero emissions in 2060,” the minister told the commission, which oversees energy, mineral resources and investment.

The country was looking to build a nuclear power plant with an installed capacity of 250-500 MW in the initial development phase, he said, emphasizing that nuclear power was a viable option to reduce electricity costs.

Ricardo Reina, associate partner at McKinsey & Company, noted that development was only beginning on small modular reactor (SMR) technology. Reina said that in the most recent cases, countries setting up their first nuclear power plants had opted for large, conventional light-water reactors (LWRs). One such example was the United Arab Emirates’s Barakah nuclear power plant, which required around 15 years from conception to operation.

“While Indonesia has already initiated certain steps, such as feasibility [studies] for potential sites, many additional steps will be required [to reach] Indonesia’s objectives, [including] extensive work and cross-stakeholder collaboration,” he told the Post on Friday in a statement. Key documents for 2025 Bob S. Effendi, COO of nuclear power company PT ThorCon Power Indonesia, said the draft national energy plan (KEN) included the use of SMRs as the first step in Indonesia’s nuclear development.

The government would need to sign the highly anticipated KEN next year to launch the country’s first small nuclear reactor in 2032, he said, along with the national electricity master plan (RUKN) and the updated electricity supply business plan (RUPTL).

“The government must also open access for financiers to fund nuclear power projects and [offer] nuclear power at a [competitive] price,” he told the Post on Thursday. Bob added that it was important for stakeholders to anticipate opportunities under the incoming administration of United States president-elect Donald Trump.

“Though Trump is projected to put the brakes on intermittent renewables projects financing [...], the positive thing is, he is also expected to encourage exports of advanced nuclear technology, or generation IV, like SMRs to various countries, including Indonesia,” he said. The Nuclear Energy Regulatory Agency (Bapeten) said in a statement made available to the Post on Wednesday that the country might pursue investments from the US, Russia, the European Union, South Korea or Canada to develop its nuclear energy sector.

It also said US financial institutions might be able to fund Indonesia’s nuclear projects if the country intensified bilateral cooperation in the energy sector, through forums like the Indo-Pacific Economic Framework (IPEF), and simplified licensing to encourage nuclear investments.

The Bapeten statement also noted that Russia’s State Atomic Energy Corporation Rosatom was a major global player in nuclear technology, and that it was experienced in building power plants in developing countries through the build-own-operate funding scheme through a “complete package” that included radioactive waste management.

“China, on the other hand, can build nuclear power plants at a relatively low cost. They also offer large investments through the Belt and Road Initiative [BRI],” Bapeten said.

This article was published in thejakartapost.com with the title "". Click to read: https://www.thejakartapost.com/business/2024/12/09/ri-pursues-nuclear-pa....

Download The Jakarta Post app for easier and faster news access:
Android: http://bit.ly/tjp-android
iOS: http://bit.ly/tjp-ios

Thursday, August 14, 2025 - 16:47

User login

  • Request new password
©Copyright WNP Library Intranet 2025