Preparing for the Energy Transition in South Sumatra for Youth

Palembang, 5 December 2023 – The increasing intensity of hydrometeorological disasters in the last decade indicates that climate change is currently underway. Secretary General of the United Nations (UN), Antonio Guterres, said that the earth is entering an era of global boiling, where July 2023 was recorded as the hottest day in history.

Climate change occurs due to high greenhouse gas emissions. The energy sector is one of the highest emitters, especially with the use of fossil energy such as coal. Indonesia is one of the coal producing countries, with 80% of its coal output for export needs. Indonesian coal production is concentrated in four provinces in Indonesia, namely East Kalimantan, South Kalimantan, North Kalimantan and South Sumatra. South Sumatra is a food and energy barn for the island of Sumatra. The coal produced by South Sumatra will be used to generate electricity which will supply all the electricity needs on the island of Sumatra, according to projections, it will even export electricity as far as Singapore.

Marlistya Citraningrum, Sustainable Energy Access Program Manager of the Institute for Essential Services Reform (IESR), in a public lecture at Sriwijaya University quoted a survey related to the current climate change phenomenon, young people aged 24-39 years had high concerns about the climate crisis and impact.

“The energy transition is a systematic effort to mitigate the impact of the climate crisis that we are increasingly feeling,” said Marlistya Citraningrum, who is familiarly known as Citra.

This change in the energy system also has other impacts, namely the growing need for workers who have skills and insight into sustainability.

However, young people’s enthusiasm for getting involved in green jobs is hampered by several things, one of which is the limited information about green jobs and job vacancies in the green jobs sector.

“In the energy transition process, young people can take roles according to their respective skills, not limited to the engineering field alone. Social departments such as economics and international relations can also contribute to the energy transition process,” said Citra.

Citra added that currently a number of challenges still face the development of green jobs in Indonesia, one of which is related to certification. Currently, certification is still limited to technical sectors related to renewable energy-based electricity generation.

On the other hand, reducing and stopping the use of coal and switching to renewable energy will have an impact on social and economic aspects in coal-producing regions in Indonesia. Hari Wibawa, Head of the Economic and Development Funding Division of South Sumatra Bappeda, on the same occasion, said that coal reserves in South Sumatra province will run out in 12 years, so economic diversification is very important to avoid major economic shocks when the coal sector stops.

“Our (government’s) current priority is to integrate the energy transition plan into the RPJPD so that every action or activity has a strong legal basis,” said Hari.

The Modal Share of Indonesia’s Transportation Requires Strong Push from the Government

Dekarbonisasi sektor transportasi Indonesia

Jakarta, 5 December 2023 – Since 2021 the transportation sector in Indonesia has been ranked as the second highest emitter, displacing industry. Many emissions from the transportation sector are caused by burning fuel, which is the main energy source for vehicles. With projected economic growth and development plans, it is predicted that emissions from the Indonesia’s transportation sector will continue to increase. As an effort to strengthen climate change mitigation actions, decarbonization of the transportation sector is important.

Fabby Tumiwa, Executive Director of the Institute for Essential Services Reform (IESR) in the webinar entitled “Dissemination of Indonesia’s Transportation Decarbonization Roadmap”, (5/12) emphasized that to ensure each climate change mitigation actions are in line with the Paris Agreement, emission reduction targets must be calculated not just based on percentages but also taking into account alignment with Paris targets.

“IESR carries out modeling to find policies and steps that can be taken to increase Indonesia’s climate change mitigation actions, especially in the transportation sector,” said Fabby.

The draft transportation decarbonization roadmap focuses on two scales, namely the national and regional scales (Jabodetabek).

IESR sustainable mobility analyst, Rahmi Puspita Sari added that the increase in private vehicle ownership, especially motorbikes, has been one of the factors causing increased emissions from the transportation sector.

“With various types of demand growth and the choice of mode still being private transport, this has an impact on greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions in the transportation sector. “Most of the GHG emissions come from passenger transportation (73%), and followed by land transportation (27%),” said Rahmi.

Fauzan Ahmad, member of the Tasrif Modeling Team, who participated in modeling the transportation decarbonization road map, explained one of the main findings from this simulation, namely that in the Avoid, Shift, Improve (ASI) scheme, which is quite common for transportation management, there is potential for reducing emissions up to 18% by avoiding travel by implementing a work from home (WFH) system.

“Actually, only 8% of the total workers can work from home, of this 8% potential, currently only around 1% of workers work from home. If this potential is maximized, we can reduce emissions even more by the number of trips avoided,” said Fauzan.

Fauzan also added that the choice to review transportation patterns in Jabodetabek was because Jabodetabek was considered as a unified area that interacts with each other.

Arij Ashari Nur Iman, a modeler from the Tasrif Modeling Team, added that with the current condition of the transportation system, the most effective solution for decarbonizing the transportation sector is to divide passenger loads into various modes (mode share).

“Electric vehicles will have a big impact on the goal of reducing emissions, but two conditions must be achieved to have an impact on a national scale, namely increasing the sales share of electric vehicles and creating a policy framework that supports the discard rate of ICE vehicles. Modal shifting to public transportation will be a sustainable solution in the context of fuel and resource use, but requires large initial investment,” explained Arij.

Professor of civil engineering at Gadjah Mada University (UGM), Agus Taufik Mulyono, stated that the Indonesian government still does not have the courage to create (transportation) policies that encourage share modes.

“This share mode issue must be regulated by the government in law, currently there is no law. This study is good, because when more advanced modes of sharing are deemed difficult, then both are still road transportation, but shared between spaces,” he said.

Agus also reminded of implementation challenges if the recommendations of this study were adopted in the form of policies or regulations.

In line with Agus, Alloysius Joko Purwanto, Research and Development Commission, Jakarta City Transportation Council also highlighted the use of public transportation which should be further encouraged.

“Current policies have the potential to cause contradictions, such as the electric vehicle incentive policy, which on one hand has the potential to increase private vehicle ownership rates and has the potential to increase traffic jams because the discard rate for ICE vehicles is still low,” said Joko.

The use of biofuels is also included in the transportation decarbonization roadmap modeling. Edi Wibowo, Director of Bioenergy, Ministry of Energy and Mineral Resources, said that the results of this study are broadly in line with Indonesia’s energy transition road map which will generally add renewable energy capacity to power plants and other sectors will also follow to shift to a more efficient system like such as biofuel.

“We (at the Ministry of Energy and Mineral Resources) continue to develop biofuels, currently we are testing the application of Biodiesel B40 and if the process goes smoothly in 2026 it will start to be used. This (development) effort is a form of real support for Indonesia’s energy transition plan,” said Edi.

Gonggomtua E. Sitanggang, Director, ITDP Indonesia emphasized the importance of public communication to raise awareness among the public. When the public has sufficient awareness and knowledge about the importance of a low-emission transportation system, it will be easier to involve and mobilize them to slowly reduce their dependence on the use of private vehicles.

“Apart from that, it is also important to look at the relationship between the national government and regional governments. What needs to be underlined is our laws and regulations relating to regional autonomy (otonomi daerah), where the one who has the budget and authority is the regional government, while transportation has not yet become one of the KPIs (key performance indicators) for regional leaders. As a result, the budget for the transportation sector is very minimal,” said Gonggom.

Promoting Massive Use of Solar Energy in Jambi

Jambi, 28 November 2023 – In the General National Energy Plan (RUEN) document, Indonesia targets 23% renewable energy mix by 2025. Until 2023, Indonesia has only achieved 12.5% renewable energy in its energy mix. In the Jambi Government Forum organized by the Institute for Essential Services Reform (IESR) in collaboration with the Jambi Province Energy and Mineral Resources Office (ESDM) (28/11), Yunus Saefulhak, Head of the Energy Policy and Hearing Facilitation Bureau stated that the National Energy Council (DEN) predicts that in 2025 Indonesia will only reach 17-19 percent of renewable energy in the national energy mix.

“The province’s role in pursuing predetermined renewable energy targets is important, in accordance with the potential in each region,” said Yunus.

Yunus added that Jambi does have quite a lot of fossil resources, but it can still seize various opportunities to develop renewable energy, such as the use of rooftop PV on government buildings.

Anjas Bandarso, Energy Policy Analyst from the Directorate General of Regional Development, Ministry of Home Affairs, in the same forum highlighted the limited authority of regional governments for energy matters.

“Whatever the sub-national government does, as long as there is no authority given to the regional government, it will just be a story. So the central government is looking for ways in which regions can develop new, renewable energy. “This can be realized with Presidential Decree 11/2023 concerning additional concurrent authority for regional governments,” said Anjas.

Nanang Kristanto, Sub-Coordinator for RUEN Implementation Monitoring, National Energy Council, added that whatever target is the government’s priority, whether for Net Zero Emission (NZE) or achieving renewable energy mix figures, local governments have an important role.

“Regional governments have an important role in pushing the energy transition agenda by maximizing energy transition derivative activities in their regions, funding support, preparing human resources to maintain decentralized generating installations, as well as socializing new renewable energy in districts and even sub-districts,” said Nanang.

Apart from having natural products such as oil palm plantations and coal producers, Jambi also has large renewable energy potential. Jambi Province is targeting a renewable energy mix of 24% by 2025, and this target is optimistic that it will be achieved because currently the Merangin-Kerinci hydroelectric power plant with a capacity of 350 MW is being built.

Jambi also has quite large solar energy potential, reaching 281.5 GW based on land suitability. Marlistya Citraningrum, Sustainable Energy Access Program Manager, IESR stated that solar energy could be an option that allows various parties to contribute to the availability of clean electricity.

“Installing rooftop PVs has a number of benefits, such as being a means of mutual cooperation in achieving energy mix targets and reducing emissions, providing clean electricity sources in various regions, opening up business/employment opportunities for local residents, as well as increasing the competitiveness of the solar industry/business in Indonesia,” he said.

Marlistya added that the public wants incentives for rooftop PVs users, which could be in the form of ease of licensing, or facilitation of financing by the government.

Stocktaking the Climate Action in Southeast Asia

Johor Bahru, 15 November 2023 – In achieving the agenda of global energy transition, the Southeast Asia region is taking measures to climate action including its non-state actors. Meaningful participation from non-state actors is crucial in observing the currently running policies and providing input for future improvements.

Stocktaking becomes a crucial activity to track the current progress of climate mitigation and action. The results of the assessment then can be utilized to design robust policy recommendations. Non-state actors can enrich the nuance of the global stocktake  by convening and aligning climate action with the interest of the global community. 

Wira Agung Swadana, the green economy program manager at the Institute for Essentials Services Reform (IESR) highlighted the key takeaways from the first global stocktake during the Asia Pacific Climate Week 2023 in the session “Integrating the role of NSAs focused on the thematic areas–Adaptation, Finance, and Mitigation”. The imbalance in growth of global emissions compared to the climate mitigation plan leads to issues such as the urgency to have systemic transformation.

“We need more ambition in action and support during the implementation of the mitigative action in the region,” he said.

Wira added that achieving net-zero emissions requires systemic transformation across all sectors, and we need to tap into every opportunity to achieve higher output. The business and commercial sector is an important factor in accelerating energy transition as they consume massive amounts of energy. Besides, some of the industries (especially those involved in multinational-scale supply chains), have the obligation to green their business process.

“What the government can do for business (to decarbonize their operations) is to provide an enabling environment if they want to shift to more sustainable business process. For instance, the government can give incentive and disincentive based on the choice of energy resource used to power the businesses,” Wira concluded.

Jingjing Gao, from the UNEP Copenhagen Climate Centre, added that the private sector-led initiative is worth noting. Yet, there is still a gap in data incorporation from the private sector.

Reflection on Indonesian Leadership in ASEAN 2023

Jakarta, 20 October 2023 – The transfer of the ASEAN leadership baton to Laos marks the end of Indonesia’s leadership in the ASEAN region. A number of milestones such as cooperation with external non-ASEAN parties, as well as several opportunities for cooperation between ASEAN member countries are a good note. However, this good record has not been matched by an increasing commitment to curbing the rate of climate change, the impacts of which are increasingly being felt.

In a Public Discussion entitled “Reflecting on Indonesia’s Leadership in ASEAN 2023: Towards a Regional Frontrunner in Climate and Energy Transition Issues”, Wira Agung Swadana, Green Economy Program Manager of the Institute for Essential Services Reform (IESR), stated that during Indonesia’s leadership period, cooperation or action was agreed upon by ASEAN member countries are still mainly infrastructural.

“The results of the 2023 ASEAN Summit and other energy and climate-related meetings can be seen that there is still a lack of focus on renewable energy issues. “For example, there is no joint commitment to increase the development of a cleaner solar energy or hydropower ecosystem,” said Wira.

Apart from the ecosystem for renewable energy, Wira also said that several issues had ‘eluded’ the attention of ASEAN high-ranking officials, such as the issue of critical minerals and low-carbon and sustainable electric transportation.

Executive Director of the Indonesia Research Institute for Decarbonization (IRID), Moekti Handajani (Kuki) Soejachmoen, explained the phenomenon of the high contribution of emissions from the energy sector in ASEAN countries.

“Energy is an engine for development, so if development still uses energy procurement patterns with a business-as-usual scheme (high fossil-ed), emissions will definitely increase significantly. On the one hand, all ASEAN member countries need to carry out development but must control their emissions,” explained Kuki.

Kuki then added that the role of technology is needed to enable development to continue and keep the amount of emissions released low. The use of this technology will have financial consequences.

By looking at this problem, Kuki emphasized that it is important for ASEAN as a regional unit to develop a comprehensive strategy to achieve the NDC targets for each country and encourage the achievement of Net Zero Emissions. From this strategy, mitigation actions can be grouped that can be carried out alone, those that require international financial support, those whose emission reduction units can be sold and those that require additional purchase of emission reduction units.

IESR Energy and Climate Diplomacy Coordinator, Arief Rosadi, highlighted ASEAN’s tendency to seem slow in taking strategic diplomatic positions, thus creating various gaps such as institutional gaps, ambition gaps, implementation gaps and participation gaps. According to him, Indonesia can use its position to strengthen its climate and energy diplomacy and contribute to narrowing gaps in ASEAN.

“Increasing climate ambition in strengthening Indonesia’s climate and energy diplomacy strategy is a modality for Indonesia to encourage the same thing in other countries at regional, bilateral and multilateral levels. Apart from that, fixing the gap can be done by encouraging the resolution of the gap at the regional level in ASEAN’s internal processes,” added Arief.

Workshop the Calculation of Greenhouse Gas (GHG) Emission and Budget Tagging

To achieve the ambitious target of reducing Greenhouse Gas (GHG) emissions in accordance with the Paris Agreement, Indonesia released the Enhanced Nationally Determined Contribution (NDC) document which states the emission reduction target is 31.89% (with its own efforts) and 43.2% (with support internationally) in 2030. In more detail, the National Medium Term Development Plan Document (RPJMN) also supports this target by stating that Indonesia can achieve a 27.3% reduction in GHG emissions by 2024.

As a province that uses and uses large-scale coal, and is able to export electricity to surrounding provinces, South Sumatra is one of the largest GHG contributors nationally. In connection with this, the Institute for Essential Services Reform (IESR) held a capacity building event entitled Workshop on Calculating GHG Emissions and Budget Tagging with the Provincial and Regency/City Regional Planning Agencies (Bappeda) in South Sumatra on September 25 2023.

In the workshop which was attended by around 25 representatives of Provincial and Regency/City Bappeda in South Sumatra, IESR presented two speakers from the Fiscal Policy Agency and the National Research and Innovation Agency (BRIN). Representing the IESR Sustainable Energy Access team, Reananda Permono explained that IESR is committed to holding four workshop events in the context of capacity building for the South Sumatra Bappeda in dealing with the issue of a just energy transition and economic transformation in South Sumatra. In the regional context, this capacity building activity is needed because Bappeda is an important stakeholder in energy transition activities.

In his speech at the opening of the event, Hari Wibawa, Head of the Economic and Development Funding Division of Bappeda for South Sumatra Province, reminded Bappeda colleagues of the importance of insight into GHG emissions and budget tagging. Moreover, South Sumatra’s economy is largely supported by the mining industry, as evidenced by the many districts in South Sumatra that depend on their GRDP from the coal mining sector.

Policy Analyst from the Fiscal Policy Agency, M. Zainul Abidin, who was the first resource person, explained the importance of Budget Tagging in monitoring the impact of climate change in Indonesia. Budget marking activities are directly connected to the APBN, so that they can support the development agenda and national fiscal policy. Zainul also mentioned three functions of the APBN as an economic stimulus instrument, namely as a shock absorber (stabilization function), development agent (allocation function), and solution for people’s welfare (distribution function).

“The results of budget marking are used in the NDC (Nationally Determined Contribution) achievement monitoring system in the Ministry of Environment and Forestry’s National Registry System (SRN), and efforts are made to support the low carbon development monitoring system in the AKSARA Bappenas system. “There are quite a lot of uses for budget tagging, for example as a basis for forming cooperation in climate change action and as a basis for local governments to obtain innovative financing,” explained Zainul.

The second resource person, researcher from BRIN Rohmadi Ridlo, stated the importance of developing climate change mitigation and adaptation strategies to reduce GHG emissions in South Sumatra Province. Information regarding GHGs can then be used in identifying climate change mitigation and adaptation strategies, formulating sustainable environmental policies, and even as a basis for preparing special budgets to reduce GHGs at the provincial level.

“In general, there are five sectors that produce GHG emissions, namely energy, waste, IPPU (Industrial Process and Product Uses), agriculture, and FOLU (Forestry and Other Land Uses). The energy sector is still the largest source of GHG emissions nationally with 453.2 Mton CO2. “For the case of South Sumatra, one example of a strategy to reduce GHG emissions in the energy sector is biomass co-firing technology to produce electricity in coal-fired power plants,” explained Ridlo.

 

Arrange a Strategy to Get Around the Impact of Coal Power Plant Shutdown

Jakarta, 27 September 2023 – Indonesia’s increase in climate commitments in the Enhanced Nationally Determined Contribution (E-NDC) brings a number of implications, including plans to stop coal-fired power plant operations early to reduce emissions. This plan has several impacts, including a decrease in the income of coal-producing regions as well as national income, the potential for massive layoffs, as well as other socio-economic impacts.

In a hybrid seminar, entitled “Sunset CFPP and the Coal Industry: Reviewing Multisectoral Direction & Impact in a Just Energy Transition” (27/9), Fabby Tumiwa, Executive Director of the Institute for Essential Services Reform (IESR) explained that the energy transition agenda for both Indonesia and the destination countries for Indonesian coal exports will have an impact on a number of aspects in Indonesia.

“There are three factors that can be seen from the energy transition in coal producing areas: the link between the local economy and coal, the readiness of existing human resources, and alternative economic options that can be developed in that area, and how mitigation plans can be prepared,” said Fabby.

In the presentation material delivered by Ilham Surya, IESR Environmental Policy Analyst, it was explained that the role of the coal industry in the economy of coal-producing regions is quite significant.

“The GRDP contribution is between 50% and 70% in Muara Enim and Paser, but the multiplier effect is not that big,” said Ilham.

Within the scope of national policy, the Ministry of PPM/Bappenas is currently preparing a Long Term Development Plan (RPJP), one of the points  is economic transformation.

“The energy transition is part of the green economic transformation, so in the latest draft of RPJP, what we meant by transition is not only seen from the energy sector,” explained Nizhar Marizi, Director of Energy, Mineral and Mining Resources, Bappenas.

Grita Anindarini, Deputy Director for Programs, Indonesia Center for Environmental Law (ICEL), emphasized the important role of the policy framework and implementation of various existing regulations.

“A just energy transition requires a very big policy transformation on employment, environment, energy, and financing. Currently there are several policy regulations regarding the energy transition, but their implementation still faces various obstacles,” explained Grita.

Haris Retno Susmiyati, Lecturer at the Faculty of Law, Mulawarman University, admits that economic dependence on coal commodities is not a good thing. She said that in 2015, when coal prices fell drastically, the economy of East Kalimantan also slumped.

“By regulation, the company’s obligation to pay royalties to the government is only 13.5% of that figure. The regional government only gets 5%, so it is not the coal producing regions that actually enjoy the profits from coal,” said Retno.

Having a similar context to East Kalimantan, Jambi province is also starting to prepare for transition. Ahmad Subhan, Head of Economy and Natural Resources, Bappeda Jambi, said that even though it is not the main coal producing area, the contribution of the coal sector to GRDP is quite significant.

“Coal is indeed significant for supporting the economy, but if there are substitutes that are more relevant to regional conditions, they can be explored further. For this transition, we in Jambi province are supportive but not drastic. We are also waiting for substitutions for economic transformation,” said Ahmad.