BPPT pushes for renewable energy sources

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.