Jakarta. Indonesia has been a fossil-energy-dependent country, where fossil fuels contributed to 93 percent of Indonesia's primary energy demand, with coal (40 percent), oil (35 percent), and natural gas (18 percent) as the three dominant sources. 

Coal continued to increase as a fraction of primary energy by displacing oil and natural gas, increasing from 39 percent in 2019 to 43 percent in 2020. This is discouraging since coal is considered the most-polluting fossil fuel.

The good thing is that Indonesia plans to transition to more environmentally-friendly renewable energy. The draft of the National Electricity Supply Plan (RUPTL) for 2021 to 2030 shows that the use of the renewable energy mix will increase to at least 48 percent from the 30 percent target in the 2019–2028 plan.

Global behemoth in energy infrastructure, GE, which claims to have powered approximately 30 percent of the country’s electricity supply and supported the development and modernization of Indonesia’s energy infrastructure for over 75 years, says that the company is ready to support Indonesia’s transition to renewable energy.

“In alignment with Indonesia’s 2060 net-zero ambition, we are ready to support the government in adopting cleaner, higher efficiency, and renewable energy solutions and providing our industry expertise and resources toward Indonesia’s decarbonization future,” said Shiv Aggarwal, Sales & BD Leader APAC, GE Renewable Energy.

Aggarwal said renewable energy has always been a central priority in GE’s energy portfolio, with the company’s innovation in the renewables space spans across solar, wind, hydro, and grid solutions. He adds that GE’s plan to combine GE Renewable Energy, GE Power, and GE Digital into one global public company, GE Vernova, in early 2024, is expected to strengthen the breadth and depth of GE’s energy expertise in the world’s transition to low-carbon energy use to address the climate crisis.

GE Renewable Energy has installed more than 400 GW capacity globally, combining onshore and offshore wind, hydro and innovative technologies, and over 90 percent of utilities are equipped with their solutions, contributing a total revenue of approximately $15.7 billion worldwide in 2021. Between January to September 2022, GE Renewable Energy’s global revenues were $9.56 billion. 

“Renewable energy is an abundant resource in many aspects — they do not fluctuate according to market dynamics. Furthermore, as countries seek to accelerate their energy transition, many are looking to increase their renewables capacity to accelerate their carbon emissions reduction commitment,” Aggarwal said.

He added that GE believes in the promise that renewable energy holds for the future and will continue to invest and develop breakthrough innovations to drive the development and adoption of renewable energy solutions as the way forward. 

However, Indonesia’s energy issue is not only in the dominant use of fossil energy that makes the transition to renewable energy will take time but also in the energy supply equity.  According to the PLN, 99.7 percent of villages in Indonesia had been electrified by 2021, with more than 4,700 villages being electricity self-sufficient and 293 villages not being electrified at all. Besides, connection quality is often a challenge, and power outages are common in some parts of Indonesia. 

Aggarwal said electricity grids in many regions, including Indonesia, are under increasing strain, and individual renewable energy assets can exacerbate grid issues, so that multiple generation assets, coupled with storage, can provide a solution to assist the grid. 

“The grid also needs to be strengthened further to harness the potential of renewable energy, be it through building new transmissions, or connecting the grid between different islands, modernizing grids, and so on,” he said.

Electric vehicle frenzy in Indonesia may also create a new headache in the country’s transition to renewable energy since fossil fuels are often the easiest way to cope with the extra burden of EV charging in the electric grid. 

Aggarwal said EVs will undoubtedly increase electricity demand. Globally, the amount of electricity needed to power all EVs by 2030 will be a whopping 640 TWh, so users and utilities should find a way to charge them with renewable energy resources.

He said renewable energy generation can help improve energy deployment as it can be stored near demand centers — thus providing an edge over traditional power generation resources in addressing countries’ growing energy demands. 

“With proper planning and infrastructure, he adds, EVs can reduce emissions, replace polluting vehicles, and boost the development of renewable energy infrastructure. EVs charged from renewable energy sources can also help contribute to grid stability by storing solar power during the day, and wind power at night,” Aggarwal said.

Aggarwal argued Battery Energy Storage System (BESS) is a great flexible mechanism to address many grid-related issues. For example, when more renewable energy resources are added to the grid, problems will arise due to the increased loads and variability. 

“BESS can help balance and regulate variable generation resources (like solar and wind) by storing excess energy and releasing it to the grid when needed. BESS also provides multiple grid services, such as frequency response, voltage regulation, and spinning reserves, which help maintain grid stability, minimizing the risks of grid failure and potential blackouts,” Aggarwal said.

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