Jakarta, December 7, 2020 – Each province in Indonesia has a lot of renewable energy potential that has not been developed optimally. Therefore, aside from devising policies that favor renewable energy, regional leaders act as an important key to cultivating renewable energy potential.
Governor of East Nusa Tenggara (NTT), Viktor Bungtilu Laiskodat, said that NTT has 60,000 MW renewable energy potential from sunlight. However, only 100 MW of it has been utilized optimally by the people. To optimize the use of renewable energy, the NTT Provincial Government hopes to take concrete steps through a collaboration with the central government and PLN.
“There is no other choice, we have to shift to renewable energy because this affects other sectors. For example, when we produce seaweed, it is rejected by European companies because it is not produced using 100% renewable energy. This means that the world’s interest lies in renewable energy, we have no choice but to shift, “said Viktor.
Indonesia also has an extraordinary social culture. Therefore, the Central Java Provincial Government uses community movements in villages to participate in building an Energy-Independent Village (Desa Mandiri Energi). Head of the Central Java Energy and Mineral Resources (ESDM), Sujarwanto Dwiatmoko, said that people in the energy-independent village use sunlight, biomass, water flow, and biodigester to generate electricity.
Deputy Regent of Musi Banyuasin, South Sumatra, Beni Hernedi said that several communities in South Sumatra district start to adopt biomass to fuel power plants. That being said, programs from the local government to optimize the energy mix need support from the central government and PLN as the main supplier of electricity.
Bali also needs the central government’s support for the collaboration between smart grid renewable energy and the old grid. According to IGW Samsi Gunarta, the Head of Bali’s Provincial Transportation Agency, this support is needed to support electric vehicles initiated by the Provincial Government. “Besides, it is impossible for us to continue the production without using (the products). Apart from the production, the usage must also be taken into account,” said Samsi.
Chungnam Province, South Korea serves as an example that the regional leaders’ success is the key to successfully directing the society to the energy transition. Chungnam Governor, Yang Seung Joo, along with 300 community organizations, has committed to eliminating carbon emissions. It is hoped that Indonesia can follow Chungnam’s steps in collaborating with the community.
Watch Governor Yang full speech, addressed on the second day of IETD 2020:
