BPPT pushes for renewable energy sources

Leony Aurora, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

Indonesia will promote the use of renewable materials, using biomass techniques, geothermal energy and hydro power, to generate electricity to liberate itself from dependence on expensive and diminishing fossil fuels.

"Renewable resources are in line with the national energy policy, or the green policy, that we are currently developing," said Yogo Pratomo, the Director General of Electricity and Energy Usage at the Ministry of Energy and Mineral Resources.

The newly appointed director general announced at a press conference held on the sidelines of an international workshop on biomass and clean fossil fuel power plant technology at the Inter-Continental Hotel in Central Jakarta on Tuesday.

The two-day workshop was organized by the Agency for the Assessment and Application of Technology (BPPT) with the aim of educating industry leaders about the problems of and solutions to the impending electricity crisis. With the energy shortfall autonomous regions will have to develop new power plants and the BPPT hopes most of those will employ renewable energy sources.

Eighty-five percent of Indonesia's national energy consumption comes from fossil-based oil and gas, which are expected to run out within the next 15 to 20 years. Biomass technology, with a potential to produce up to 50,000 MegaWatts (MW) nationwide, is considered one of the best alternatives to replace fossil fuels.

"While the potential is there, currently only about 640 MW of electricity is being produced using biomass," said Yogo. "Most is the by-product of forestry businesses."

In addition forestry waste, estate crops waste, such as palm fruit or sugarcane bagasse, agriculture crop waste, such as paddy husks or cassava stems and city waste can be converted into energy by a combustion process.

"Because such things are considered waste, they are practically free of charge," said Yogo. "Diesel fuel is expensive, and in remote areas, there's also high transportation costs."

To name another advantage, biomass produces only clean gasses as excess.

However, Indonesia lacks the technology to undertake such a process on a large scale. Foreign countries, such as Japan, Finland and the United Kingdom have shown interest in developing small-scale biomass power plants for Indonesia.

PT Navigat Innovative Ind., cooperating with Organics Ltd. from the United Kingdom, is planning to build a facility to convert city waste from Denpasar, Gianyar, Tabanan and Badung regencies in Bali into energy.

"We are currently in negotiations with (state-owned electric company) PLN on power pricing," said Sebastiaan Sauren, Navigat's director.

The planned power plant is expected to produce 20 MW of electricity from 800 tons of waste daily. "The investment needed is US$40 million," said Sebastiaan. He declined to name the private investors involved.

Separately, Yogo also said that the government had proposed an energy law, which would stipulate that all power producers were obligated to use renewable materials to produce at least five percent of their total capacity.

"We hope that it can be endorsed by the House of Representatives before the upcoming national elections," he said.