Indonesia and Brunei Discuss Energy Diversification
Indonesia’s Minister of Energy and Mineral Resources Bahlil Lahadalia held a bilateral meeting with Deputy Minister (Energy) at the Prime Minister’s Office of Brunei Darussalam Dato Seri Paduka Awang Haji Mohamad Azmi Bin Haji Mohd Hanifah to discuss energy cooperation opportunities, including electricity generation development, oil production technology, and potential petroleum supply prospects for Indonesia.
The meeting took place on the margins of the Indo Pacific Energy Security Ministerial and Business Forum in Tokyo, Japan, on Sunday, 15 March 2026. “This is a golden opportunity for regional collaboration,” Bahlil said, according to the Ministry of Energy and Mineral Resources official website on Monday, 16 March 2026.
According to Bahlil, Brunei recognises that Indonesia has made significant progress in a structured manner in developing electricity generation from various energy sources. Currently, approximately 99 per cent of Brunei’s electricity generation remains dependent on gas, and the nation is seeking to reduce this dependency. Brunei is interested in learning from Indonesia’s experience in developing electricity generation from diverse energy sources, including renewable and new energy. Brunei is also preparing a plan to increase its national electricity generation capacity to five times its current level, planning to add approximately 4 gigawatts of capacity from its current installed capacity of around 1 gigawatt.
Bahlil stated that Indonesia is opening opportunities for energy sector cooperation. The government is exploring the possibility of importing crude oil from Brunei to help maintain domestic energy supply stability. Brunei is known to have oil production capacity of approximately 100,000 to 110,000 barrels per day.
Additionally, Brunei’s government has expressed interest in Enhanced Oil Recovery (EOR) technology used by national energy company PT Pertamina (Persero) to increase oil production from mature wells. Bahlil stated that the Indonesian government is ready to facilitate technical cooperation between Brunei and Pertamina, including sharing experience and knowledge regarding the application of this technology.
In the meeting, Indonesia encouraged investment opportunities from Brunei through the Indonesian Economic Development Corridor programme. Through this scheme, Brunei is invited to participate in electricity infrastructure development, particularly in remote areas with natural resource potential but still requiring energy infrastructure support.
Cooperation discussions also included strengthening human resource capacity through capacity-building programmes, ranging from upstream oil and gas sectors to renewable energy auditor training.
Bahlil assessed that the meeting opened opportunities for strengthening the energy relationship between Indonesia and Brunei. Beyond petroleum supply cooperation, the two nations also discussed potential collaboration in clean energy fields such as green hydrogen development and energy infrastructure investment in remote areas.
Meanwhile, Mohamad Azmi expressed his country’s interest in learning about EOR technology implementation in Indonesia. He stated that Brunei currently uses water flooding methods to increase oil production and is considering other methods such as chemical flooding, which is part of EOR technology.