One of the world’s largest emitters of greenhouse gases, Indonesia, has proposed a plan to reach net-zero emissions by 2070. According to the government, it is Indonesia’s most ambitious and feasible goal. This established target to achieve carbon neutrality by 2070 has two different angles to it. Given that China, the world’s largest emitter, has a net-zero deadline of 2060, environmentalists and experts argue the government can do much more, much sooner. Despite widespread acknowledgement of coal’s role in climate change, they challenged the government’s strategy for continuing to rely on coal as a primary component of the national energy mix in the next decades. The government was also chastised for failing to set a more ambitious emissions reduction target in response to the increasingly dismal climate change forecasts.
While on the other hand, the government stands firm on its belief that 2070 is a realistic aim after considering the country’s economy and population. Policymakers say that it is necessary to examine both national development and the size of the population to maintain the economic growth that ranges within 5-7%. The good news is that even in the short period after announcing the net-zero by 2070 goal, the Indonesian government has recognized that setting the bar even higher could lead to greater chances. However, recent advancements imply that, with international cooperation, Indonesia could achieve its net zero goal by 2060, or perhaps sooner.
What Is Needed To Achieve The Target?
The debate about Indonesia reaching its net zero emissions level is ongoing. The government is trying hard to acknowledge its revised commitments. This section of the article includes how Indonesia will achieve its target and all that the government of the state is proposing to do.
Accelerating energy sector decarbonisation is critical to raising and enabling Indonesia’s net zero targets. Energy planning today will have far-reaching implications for decarbonisation development not only in Indonesia but also in the Southeast Asian region and globally. The Ministry of Energy and Mineral Resources of the state is actively designing electricity and utility strategies to satisfy the upcoming demand of 1,600 TWh in a carbon-neutral way by 2045, coinciding with Indonesia’s centennial. Other scenarios, aimed at 2050 (‘moderate’) and 2060 (‘pessimist’), are also being prepared. Given the increasing emissions from energy and transportation, initiatives to link the two sectors are urgently needed.
By 2025, the goal is to have 2.1 million e-bikes, 2200 e-cars, and 10% of public e-bus fleets on the road. Recently, an all-encompassing plan was released that aggregates electric vehicle adoption promises and targets from both state-owned organizations and businesses. Indonesia plans to have 27,408 electric vehicles, 715,694 electric motorcycles, and 8264 electric buses on the road by 2025, according to the roadmap. This is in line with Indonesia’s objectives to strengthen its manufacturing capabilities in the battery industry, leveraging its nickel and bauxite assets. The government has mandated the formation of a battery holding corporation. The electric battery is one of five national clean energy research priorities identified by the Ministry of Research and Technology. Electricity supply, particularly from renewable sources, must keep up with the rising demand from an expanding number of electric vehicles. Because there will be less need for biofuels as more EVs are sold, it will be easier to produce them responsibly. Decarbonizing the transportation sector is linked to the number of electrified transport modes, that is, tying transportation and energy decarbonization together.
Indonesia has also devised a strategy to boost biofuel production in order to satisfy its renewable energy targets. Indonesia currently has a B30 biodiesel regulation, which means that 30% palm oil is combined with diesel fuel. B30 biodiesel generated one-third of renewable energy in the energy mix as of the first semester of 2020. Apart from deforestation, relying on biofuel to satisfy renewable standards exposes Indonesia to carbon-based technologies, putting stranded assets such as infrastructure or built-environment objects that are obsoleted by new technology at risk.
Conclusion
By continuing to plan for privatizing the transmission system, decentralizing the power system, allowing for renewable energy deployment and circular energy systems, and continuing to couple decarbonisation in energy supply and the transport sector with substantial electrification of the passenger vehicle fleet, Indonesia’s energy sector can be transformed from a dependency on fossil fuels to a net zero system.
