Jakarta. Developed economies have double standards when it comes to coal-fired power generation, according to Chief Investment Minister Luhut Binsar Pandjaitan on Saturday as he recalled Germany seeking the combustible black rock from Indonesia.

“From my experience, there will never be a single developed economy that wants to see a developing country become developed,” Luhut said at the 2023 Indonesia Net Zero Summit in Jakarta on Saturday.

The statement was in response to an audience member’s question on whether Indonesia would try to aim for a much earlier net zero emission target. Indonesia at present is aiming to reach net zero by 2060 or sooner.

“So we have to carefully calculate the things that we need to do [towards net zero]. If we stop coal-fired power plants abruptly, they [the developed economies] are still even using coal. I remember how Germany and Poland imported our coal. They often make this sort of double standards. When I asked them about it [on why they were still using coal], they could not answer,” Luhut said.

Luhut also told the conference that expediting the net zero target was not as simple as it seems.

“Our net zero target was at 2070, but we then changed it to 2060. Achieving net zero emissions earlier than 2060 calls for technology and discipline. The government cannot work alone without [the young people’s] help. … While I respect your spirit, it is not as simple as it seems,” Luhut told the summit.

Indonesia last year received a $20 billion climate finance deal –namely the Just Energy Transition Partnership (JETP) -- from coalitions of wealthy nations and financial institutions. Although Indonesia has made the necessary preparations, the JETP money remains to be seen, according to Luhut. 

Online media Bisnis.com revealed in June 2022 that Germany asked 150 million tons of Indonesian coal that year. The Russia-Ukraine war sparked an energy crisis in Europe, thus forcing Germany into importing coal.  

The National Statistics Agency (BPS), as reported by Katadata, wrote that Indonesia exported 5.8 million tons of coal to EU member states throughout 2022, marking a 1,373 percent jump from just 397,000 tons the previous year. Poland became the European bloc’s largest importer of Indonesian coal in 2022 after buying 2.38 million tons. The country did not purchase any coal from Indonesia the previous year. Germany bought 60,500 tons of Indonesian coal last year as the country extended the operation of two coal-fired power plants until March 2024.

Read More: Indonesia Wants to Know Where the JETP Money Is

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