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19 January 2021 (closed)
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Today's Headlines Geothermal
The Indonesian government aims to add 250 MW to the nation's installed geothermal power plants' production capacity in 2018. Based on data from Indonesia's Energy and Mineral Resources Ministry, Indonesia's geothermal power capacity stood at 1,808.5 MW at the end of 2017, below the government's target of 1,858.5 MW. Although the production figure is rising, Indonesia only taps 10.3 percent of its geothermal potential.
Good news for supporters of renewable energy. The Sarulla geothermal power plant, located in Tapanuli (North Sumatra), now has two units in the commercial operation stage, hence the power plant's total capacity has increased to 220 Megawatt (MW). The second unit of the plant commenced commercial production earlier this week.
In an attempt to attract investment in geothermal exploration in Indonesia, the central government decided to remove a land tax for companies that explore geothermal energy resources through a new decree. In 2017 this land tax will be scrapped for all companies that hold a geothermal business permit and are still in the exploration stage. According to information released on the website of Indonesia's Finance Ministry companies are entitled to a 100 percent tax reduction in land tax each year, for up to seven years.
The government of Indonesia plans to offer 19 geothermal blocks to investors in 2016 through tenders and direct assignment. Yunus Saifulhak, Chief of Geothermal Power at the Energy Ministry's Directorate General, said eight blocks will be offered through open tenders, while the 11 remaining geothermal power blocks will be given to state-owned enterprises. These 19 blocks are part of a larger package consisting of 27 geothermal blocks with a total combined power capacity of 1,535 megawatt (MW) that is to be offered to private and state-owned investors in the 2016-2017 period.
The government of Indonesia will offer 21 geothermal blocks to investors over the next two years. Combined these 21 blocks, which are estimated to require USD $4.2 billion in investment, have a power generation capacity of 1,065 megawatt (MW). An official of Indonesia's Ministry of Energy and Mineral Resources said most of the geothermal power blocks will be offered through an open auction. The first auction is expected to take place in March 2016.
Indonesia's push for usage of renewable energy sources, particularly geothermal energy, at the expense of usage of fossil fuels (such as oil or coal) has experienced a setback as there has been an impasse between state-owned electricity company Perusahaan Listrik Negara (PLN) and Pertamina Geothermal Energy (PGE), a subsidiary of state-owned energy company Pertamina regarding the renewal of their power purchase deal for electricity generated by PGE's Lahendong and Kamojang plants. The existing deal expires at the end of the year.
The government of Indonesia will tender three geothermal energy projects in October 2015. These three projects are the Way Ratai (South Sumatra), Bukit Kili (West Sumatra), and Marana (Central Sulawesi) fields. Indonesia is estimated to contain about 40 percent of the world’s geothermal reserves and therefore entails great potential for this energy source. However, Southeast Asia’s largest economy only utilizes approximately 4.7 percent (1,403 megawatts) of its total geothermal capacity (29,475 megawatts).
On 23 November 2014, Indonesia Investments released the latest edition of its newsletter. This free newsletter, which is sent to our subscribers once per week, contains the most important news stories from Indonesia that have been reported on our website in the last seven days. Most of the topics involve economic matters such as the country’s higher subsidized fuel prices, the central bank’s key interest rate, a revised inflation outlook, geothermal power development, external debt, and more.
Latest Columns Geothermal
In 2018 Indonesia is expected to become the world's second-biggest geothermal energy producer, surpassing the Philippines that now lies second after the United States. Meanwhile, Indonesia's Energy and Mineral Resources Ministry projects Indonesia to become the world's largest geothermal power producer by 2021. These developments are based on ongoing geothermal development in Southeast Asia's largest economy.
Indonesian Vice President Jusuf Kalla has high hopes for the development of renewable energy, such as geothermal energy, in Indonesia. Given that fossil fuels are exhaustive and dirty, clean and renewable energy sources are the future. Therefore, Indonesia should make more use of its huge geothermal energy potential. Southeast Asia's largest economy is estimated to contain 40 percent of the world's total geothermal reserves. However, it only utilizes 5 percent of its geothermal energy capacity.
Indonesian President Joko Widodo (often called Jokowi) emphasized that the government of Indonesia needs to boost development of renewable energy. Although Indonesia contains huge potential for renewable energy (particularly geothermal energy), the share of renewable energy in Indonesia’s total energy use currently stands at around 5 percent only, the remainder being fossil energy. By providing incentives, attractive tariffs and an easier licensing and registration process, the government can generate more investment in this sector.
Inpex Corporation, a leading Japanese oil & gas exploration and production firm, announced today that it agreed to take part in the 330-megawatt Sarulla Geothermal Power Project in North Sumatra (Indonesia), the world’s largest single-contract geothermal power project. Inpex Corp acquired a 49 percent stake in a local unit of Medco Power Indonesia. As such, Inpex Corp’s participation in the project is indirect. Parent company Medco Power Indonesia owns a 37.5 percent stake in the Sarulla project.
