Indonesia to build 100 GW of solar power plants within two years
Indonesia plans to build solar power plants with a total capacity of 100 GW over the next two years, thereby accelerating the development of renewable energy sources, TV BRICS reports.
According to President of Indonesia Prabowo Subianto, approximately 100,000 hectares of land will be required to expand solar power capacity. The government has already identified large plots suitable for the construction of power plants, including around 67,000 hectares in West Java province.
The authorities are also considering the use of land owned by a state forestry company, which manages approximately 800,000 hectares of territory on the island of Java.
In addition to solar energy, the government is considering the use of alternative fuels, such as biodiesel and bioethanol. It is expected that agricultural raw materials – palm oil, sugarcane, cassava, and maize – will be used more actively for the production of bioethanol (a substitute for petrol).
The country also plans to develop geothermal energy (generation of energy from the Earth’s internal heat) and hydropower.
Indonesia intends to use new gas fields to meet domestic energy demand. The President highlighted a major field in the Andaman Sea off the coast of Aceh province, which could become the basis for the construction of a gas pipeline network linking the north of the province with other parts of Sumatra and, in the future, with Java.
In addition, the authorities plan to intensify the development of the Abadi field in the Masela block in the Arafura Sea near the Maluku Islands. The project is expected to produce about 9.5 million tonnes of liquefied natural gas annually, 150 million standard cubic feet of pipeline gas per day, and around 35,000 barrels of condensate per day. At the same time, Indonesia continues to explore new gas fields in other regions, including in Papua province.
