Jakarta—PLN Indonesia Power (PLN IP) is intensifying its efforts to achieve Enhanced National Determined Contribution (NDC) and Net Zero Emission (NZE) by intensively developing geothermal energy projects. The President and Director of PLN Indonesia Power, Edwin Nugraha Putra, said that Indonesia has 40 per cent of the world’s geothermal reserves with great potential for utilisation.
“Indonesia is a ring of fire country, blessed with large geothermal energy sources. This potential needs to be continuously developed and used as an environmentally friendly source of electrical energy,” he said in a written statement on Friday, June 7.
PLN IP signed a Joint Development Agreement (JDA) on 30 May 2024 with various parties, including Pertamina Geothermal Energy, to maximise this potential. According to Putra, this JDA marks a new stage in the efforts of two major domestic energy companies to optimise the capacity of several Geothermal Power Plants (PLTP) in Indonesia.
“This cooperation will stimulate the utilisation of the potential of geothermal resources that can encourage the acceleration of the national energy transition and the achievement of the government’s commitment to the NDC and NZE targets in Indonesia,” he explained.
The signing of the JDA is a follow-up to the Joint Development Study Agreement (JDSA) signed by the two companies on February 22, 2024. One of the main focuses of the JDA is the development of cogeneration projects in two geothermal working areas by utilising the energy contained in brine to increase electricity production capacity.
The initial development targets of ready-to-develop co-generation geothermal plants (binary plants) are the Ulubelu Binary Unit and Lahendong Binary Unit, which have the potential to increase the installed capacity by 30 MW and 15 MW, respectively.
“By utilising the results of innovation and advanced technology, the utilisation of geothermal energy can be increased so that the fulfilment of electricity needs in the country from NRE continues to increase,” Edwin added.
Meanwhile, PGE President Director Julfi Hadi said that one of the efforts to achieve 1 GW capacity is developing co-generation technology, which is projected to increase capacity by 230 MW. This initiative was strengthened by signing a Joint Development Agreement (JDA) with PT PLN Indonesia Power (PLN IP) on Thursday, May 30.
Another initiative is utilising the Hululais geothermal working area (WKP), which has a potential capacity of up to 110 MW. In addition, the Lumut Balai Unit 2 project has the potential to add up to 55 MW of capacity, whose progress has reached 71.72 per cent to date.
“All of these projects are targeted to run effectively this year so that the 1 GW target is getting closer,” said Julfi Hadi. (Hartatik)
