Jakarta – Indonesia has yet to show concrete steps to realise an ambitious energy transition, despite signing various international commitments. Climate Analytics’ latest report highlights Indonesia’s continuing expansion of its coal-fired power plant capacity, contrary to commitments made in various global forums.
The report, “The Impact of Global Climate Pledges on National Action: A Snapshot Across Asia,” states that Indonesia is among eight Asian countries that have not followed up on their energy transition commitments with concrete policies at the national level.
“One issue we found with the pledges is their voluntary nature, and lack of enforceability, which limits their impact. Governments can make bold statements in signing up to these pledges at a COP, without having to come up with concrete action,” said Dr Nandini Das, author of the report from Climate Analytics, Tuesday, April 8.
According to the report’s data, the capacity of coal-fired power plants in Indonesia continues to increase despite an agreement to stop using them. Currently, coal-fired power plants account for around 45 per cent of the total national electricity generation capacity.
Ironically, since the second half of 2023, Indonesia has issued new licences and started constructing new power plants with a total capacity of 1 gigawatt (GW). In fact, in the 2024-2060 National Electricity General Plan (RUKN) document, the government projects an additional 76.5 GW of power plants, an increase of around 26.8 GW compared to the 2024 projection.
“This plan is not in line with the target of phasing out coal-fired power plants as stated by Indonesia at COP26 and the President’s statement at the G20 Summit in Brazil,” Das said.
Renewable energy investment is still minimal
On the other hand, renewable energy development, such as solar and wind, has stagnated. By 2023, investment in this sector will only reach US$400 million, lower than neighbouring countries such as Thailand.
According to the report, the lack of investment is due to a complicated regulatory framework and a lack of attractive incentives for investors. “Indonesia has great potential, but investment-unfriendly policies are holding back clean energy growth,” the report states.
Indonesia has signed several global agreements, including the Global Coal to Clean Power Transition Statement and the Global Methane Pledge. In the Ministry of Energy and Mineral Resources’ carbon-neutral roadmap, Indonesia even aims to phase out all coal-fired power plants by 2056, with President Prabowo Subianto committing to phase out fossil fuel-based generation by 2040.
However, Thomas Houlie, the report’s lead author, believes that these commitments have not been reflected in the NDC (Nationally Determined Contribution) document or sectoral policies.
Methane emissions rise
Instead of decreasing, Indonesia’s methane emissions increased by 7 per cent between 2022 and 2023, despite the country’s support for the Global Methane Pledge, which targets a 30 per cent reduction in methane emissions by 2030 compared to 2022.
Houlie added that this shows that without strong accountability mechanisms, climate commitments risk becoming mere diplomatic jargon.
Besides Indonesia, the report also highlights other Asian countries such as the Philippines and Vietnam that continue to expand their use of coal, despite their commitments to reduce it. Meanwhile, South Korea and Japan remain heavily dependent on coal imports, and Singapore is still expanding its liquefied natural gas projects.
The report concludes that 2025, when countries redesign their NDC targets, will be a crucial moment to show whether international climate commitments can drive ambitious and tangible national policies. (Hartatik)
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