Indonesia to Develop New, Cleaner 'Fuel' Sourced from Solar Power Plants

The government is currently accelerating the development of a hydrogen ecosystem as part of the energy transition. This green fuel will be produced from various renewable energy sources, ranging from geothermal to Solar Power Plants (PLTS).

Director General of New, Renewable Energy and Energy Conservation (EBTKE) at the Ministry of Energy and Mineral Resources, Eniya Listiani Dewi, revealed that the government has 93 hydrogen ecosystem development initiatives spread across various regions. Collectively, these projects are estimated to attract investment of up to Rp 32 trillion.

“We currently have 93 hydrogen ecosystem development initiatives, with projects already mapped out across Indonesia,” Eniya said at the Global Hydrogen Ecosystem Summit and Exhibition (GHES) 2026 in Jakarta on Tuesday (21/7/2026).

Eniya detailed that one focus of hydrogen development is supporting the dedieselisation programme, which aims to replace diesel-fuelled power plants in remote areas with cleaner energy. For example, a hydrogen-based dedieselisation project in Sumba is set to commence commercial operation (COD) in 2028. A similar project is also being developed on Rengit Island in partnership with PT PLN (Persero).

Under this scheme, electricity from solar power plants will be used to produce hydrogen, which then functions as an energy storage medium. Beyond solar energy, she noted that hydrogen production is also being developed using geothermal energy. One instance is Pertamina’s initiative to produce hydrogen from geothermal sources in Ulubelu.

“We also see that Pertamina has begun using geothermal energy to produce hydrogen, which has been initiated in Ulubelu. We are very grateful and encourage these programmes under the direction of our minister, so that these efforts can be realised and we can see results before 2029,” she stated.