Bahlil Believes Hydrogen Cars Will Rival EVs

Jakarta, CNBC Indonesia - Minister of Energy and Mineral Resources (ESDM) Bahlil Lahadalia believes hydrogen-fuelled vehicles will become serious competitors to battery-based electric vehicles (EVs) within the next five to ten years.

According to him, hydrogen technology continues to advance and has the potential to become a primary alternative in the energy transition of the transport sector.

“My conviction is that at the latest, within 5 to 10 years, hydrogen will rival battery-based electric vehicles,” Bahlil said at the Global Hydrogen Ecosystem Summit and Exhibition (GHES) 2026 in Jakarta, quoted on Wednesday (22/7/2026).

Bahlil views the rivalry between hydrogen technology and battery-based electric vehicles as having been underway for quite some time. According to him, Japan is one of the countries driving hydrogen technology development, while China is more focused on building its electric vehicle ecosystem.

“The hydrogen debate is led by an Asian country, though I need not say which one, whose research goes in that direction, while EV batteries are being developed by China. This is a debate between rival technologies,” he said.

Nevertheless, Bahlil stressed that Indonesia does not want to side with any particular technology. The government, he said, will choose the technology that best serves the national interest.

“For me, the state’s alignment will be determined first by our continued use of clean energy, second by energy that is efficient, and third by energy that can be produced within the Unitary State of the Republic of Indonesia,” Bahlil said.