Indonesian coal mine energy storage project

Why are Indonesia's coal plants doubling in capacity?

Captive coal plants built for industry have tripled in capacity since 2019, exploiting a loophole in Indonesia’s coal moratorium and undermining its climate pledges under the Paris Agreement and Just Energy Transition Partnership (JETP).

What are Indonesia's coal gasification projects?

The coal gasification projects are part of the 21 natural resource processing projects worth $40 billion that the government seeks to accelerate. Indonesia also plans to increase its fuel storage capacity and build a refinery with capacity of 500,000 barrels per day to ensure energy security, Bahlil said.

Does Indonesia have a captive coal plant?

Indonesia’s metals-processing focus, which the government calls “downstreaming,” has turbocharged the expansion of captive coal plants. Since 2019, captive coal capacity has tripled from 5.5 GW to 16.6 GW, and the fleet now comprises 130 plants of at least 30 megawatts each, with 21 more in development, according to the GEM report.

Will Indonesia retire coal plants early?

That phaseout plan is part of Indonesia’s Just Energy Transition Partnership (JETP), signed in 2022 with a group of industrialized countries that pledged to help with the energy transition. But three years into the JETP implementation, there’s been little progress on retiring coal plants early, Zakki said.

How can Indonesia transition from coal to renewables?

•Reform the energy policy framework: In other coal regions around the globe, one of the first steps to get started with the transition are investments into renewables, but in Indonesia this is hardly seen due to fossil subsidies and policy framework conditions. This urgently needs to change.

Is Indonesia's New coal plan environmentally friendly?

Although Jakarta has previously said the new plan would be its most environmentally friendly, helping to achieve a 2060 target of net zero greenhouse gas emissions, it walked back Indonesia’s commitment on retiring coal assets. “Coal should not be considered an illicit commodity,” Energy Minister Bahlil Lahadalia told a press conference.