Solar PV and Cooperatives Combined to Achieve Energy Democracy

Jakarta, 24 June 2021, IESR survey shows that more people are interested in adopting rooftop solar power plants, especially if an attractive financing scheme is available. It will be a huge opportunity to expand the rooftop solar PV market answering the challenges of the climate crisis on a practical level done individually by transitioning to renewable energy.

The urge to develop renewable energy to protect the earth from rising temperatures above 1.5 degrees C, especially by utilizing solar PV has been started in 2017, through the National Movement of One Million of Solar Rooftops (Solar Archipelago).  IESR together with 13 other institutions initiated this movement. The target of this movement is to achieve 1 GW of rooftop solar PV in Indonesia by 2020, assuming one house installs 1 KWp of rooftop PV. Compared to the potential of solar power in Indonesia, whose official number is 207 GW, but the actual technical potential is way bigger up to 20.000 GW according to IESR, the 1 GW target is a small target.

“This target was made as a benchmark, considering that at that time there was no ministerial regulation, nor a market that looked potential. When we reach 1 GW, it means that there is a combination of supportive regulations, reliable EPC companies, and a mature market. So this target is not only to install 1 GW of solar PV rooftop but also to fight for the supporting ecosystem,” explained Marlistya Citraningrum, IESR’s Sustainable Energy Access Program Manager, in an online workshop entitled “Cooperatives as Agents of Change in Financing Climate Change Mitigation and Adaptation”.

The initiation of Solar Archipelago projects missed their target in achieving 1 GW of rooftop solar in Indonesia’s residential area, however, there has been a rapid increase in terms of the number of rooftop solar PV users.

“When this initiative was launched, there were around 200s new rooftop solar PV customers. Currently, there are around 3000s households of PV mini-grid. It has not reached the target of one million roofs, but there is a significant increase,” said Marlistya

The increase in PV mini-grid customers indicates that the interest and information received by the public about this technology is increasingly widespread. Since 2018 IESR has conducted market studies in the following cities, Greater Jakarta, Surabaya, seven cities in Central Java, and three cities in Bali. The survey shows that there are various potential PV mini-grid markets in each of these cities.

In Jabodetabek 13% of respondents fall into the category of early followers and early adopters. This group is respondents who have knowledge of rooftop PV and are financially able to afford it. This group only needs comprehensive information covering PV mini-grid technology, installation procedures, as well as service providers for rooftop PV installations. This group of early followers and early adopters is quite large in various cities, 19% in Surabaya, 9.6% in Central Java, and 23.3% in Bali.

Another interesting thing about IESR’s market survey is that the issue of price is still the second most frequently asked question by potential consumers. Questions about savings are the most frequently asked questions by potential customers. This phenomenon shows that price is still the main consideration for prospective solar PV customers.

The attractive rooftop solar PV mini-grid scheme is an opportunity for financial institutions, including cooperatives.

“At least, there are 3 opportunities that can be taken by cooperatives to participate in this rooftop solar PV scheme. First, by collaborating with EPC companies and providing financing schemes. Of course, you need to choose a trusted EPC company. The second is by selling solar panels as well as providing a financing scheme. Third, providing a financing scheme as well as after-sales service,” explained Marlistya.

Attractive and affordable financing schemes for PV mini-grid are still difficult to find at this time because currently EPC companies just work with banks. Of course, this should be seen as an opportunity for cooperatives to develop their programs.

Closing the first session of the morning workshop, Fitrian Ardiansyah, chairperson of the Sustainable Trade Initiative Foundation, stated that the financing of rooftop solar power plants would be one of the business niches for cooperatives.

“The green economy is aggregated at the local community level, cooperatives are the right financial institutions to pick up the ball at this opportunity,” he said. 

We Discover Indonesia has Higher Technical Potential of Solar Energy, IESR Encourages the Government to Update Renewable Energy Potential Data

March 18, 2021 — Indonesia has a higher solar power technical potential than 207 GW, which the official data released by the Indonesian government through the Ministry of Energy and Mineral Resources in 2017. Institute for Essential Services Reform (IESR), in collaboration with the Global Environmental Institute (GEI), presented the result of their research in the launching of the study Beyond 207 Gigawatts: Unleashing Indonesia’s Solar Potential (18/3). 

Fabby Tumiwa, Executive Director of IESR, in his speech explained that based on technical potential and land suitability, solar power in Indonesia could reach 3000-20,000 GWp.

“If the minimum technical potential, 3 GW, is utilized effectively, it can meet 7 (seven) times the electricity consumption of 2018,” he said.

IESR measures this technical potential using geospatial data, therefore suitable land for PV mini-grid can be identified.

Fabby added that this study recommends the government update data sources on renewable energy for providing a better signal for developing solar energy in the future.

“Indeed, it will also increase the confidence of various parties involved in solar energy development that Indonesia can rely on solar power to meet clean energy needs. Besides, this study supports PLN’s efforts to develop solar power and local governments in implementing the Regional Energy General Plan, ”he said.

At the global level, the Indonesian government can use the data to strengthen its commitment to global climate action, as stated by Jiaman Jin, Executive Director of GEI. GEI, in particular, has a program to assist developing countries in developing renewable energy by providing capacity building, technical and financial assistance.

“China and countries in Southeast Asia have collaborated on a global climate action program, including Indonesia. To achieve the Paris Agreement, today, about 29 countries have targeted carbon neutrality by relying on renewable energy. Other tools to be carbon neutral are carbon storage and carbon trading (carbon credit). These two things are also what China is currently developing, “he explained.

To achieve its commitments under the Paris Agreement, Indonesia is trying to reach the target of 23% renewable energy mix by 2025. Nevertheless, until the end of 2020, only 11.5% was realized. Meanwhile, in the National Energy General Plan (RUEN) itself, the government has a target for solar power development of 6.5 GW by 2025.

“However, the target is currently under review, and it turns out that solar (photovoltaic (PV)) is targeted to represent a third (17.6 GW) of the total net power generation of 48 GW by 2035 in the national energy grand strategy prepared by the Ministry of Energy and Mineral Resources and the National Energy Council (DEN). About 60 or 76 percent are expected to come from utility-scale solar power including floating solar PV, “said Daniel Kurniawan, Lead Author of the Study Report” Beyond 207 Gigawatts: Unleashing Indonesia’s Solar Potential “.

Daniel explained that out of 23 types of land cover, the IESR research team chose the suitable land type for PLTS development. Only 9 (nine) types of land cover were selected for mapping the technical potential of the PV mini-grid.

“Man-made forest and dry agricultural land mixed with shrubs are also included in the calculated land types, which is why these three lands were found to be acquired in the development of the solar power plant 3 x 7 MWp project, in Lombok and the solar power plant 21 MWp project in Likupang. North Sulawesi, “he explained.

Using the most optimistic scenario, 9 (nine) types of land cover covering an area of ​​1.9 million km2, the results obtained from the calculation of the technical potential of PLTS are very abundant, reaching 19.8 TWp, which is 95 times higher than the government’s estimate.

“The greatest technical potential is in Kalimantan, Sumatra, West Java, and East Java,” explained Daniel.

Moreover, talking about the General Plan for Electricity Supply (RUPTL) (2021-2030) that is being drafted by PLN, Daniel explained that until today, there is no definite information regarding the allocation of the target capacity for solar power from a total of 3.7 GW of a combined capacity plan for power solar, water, and garbage in the upcoming RUPTL.

Technical Potential Data Will Motivate Optimization of Solar Power Plant Development

Furthermore, the latest technical potential study data launched by the IESR can also be used by local governments to optimize renewable energy development. Daniel gave an example of Bali and Sumba as two islands in Indonesia that already have sufficient capital in terms of the consistency of the local government in encouraging the use of solar power through the policies they issued and also have higher technical potential of solar power.

Director of Various New Energy and Renewable Energy of Indonesian Ministry of Energy and Mineral Resources (EMR), Chrisnawan Anditya, on the same occasion, said that his party would update the data on the technical potential of solar power in Indonesia.

“Further, we are also trying to identify the sun’s potential according to the transmission line. The better the transmission line, the bigger the solar power plant development. However, if the location is outside the transmission line, we will develop it through off-grid, “said Chrisnawan.

Having comparable perception with Chrisnawan, the Executive Vice President of the New and Renewable Energy Division of PLN, Cita Dewi, said that PLN is committed to increasing the development of renewable energy. However, due to the COVID-19 pandemic, PLN is still dealing with conditions of low demand for electrical energy.  

“The demand crisis is likely to last 2 to 3 years. However, our approach to pursuing renewable energy targets includes accelerating the completion of solar, hydro, geothermal power generation and considering converting 5,000 diesel power plants to solar. The potential of solar after converting is 2 GW, “said Cita.

From the developer side, Andhika Prastawa, Chairman of the Indonesian Solar Energy Association (AESI), said that the results of the study are beneficial for developers to explore more opportunities to invest in solar PV in Indonesia. Notwithstanding, according to him, this must still be in line with the government’s support in establishing friendly policies for solar PV developers.

“The economy of solar PV is already competitive, but until now the net metering regulation is still at 6.5, it should be changed to 1, so that it has a good psychological impact on the solar PV market,” Andhika added.

Agreeing with Andhika, Herman Darnel Ibrahim, a member of the National Energy Council hopes that there will be reforms in the net metering policy. He also emphasized that in terms of installation, solar PV is the easiest renewable energy to develop because it is available in almost all places in Indonesia, so it is easy to harvest in the form of the solar power plant, and has various scales so that it is quickly built.

Wirawan, Acting President Director, PT PJB Investasi appreciated the results of the IESR study and offered to calculate the technical potential of about 192 dams and reservoirs spread across Indonesia.

“The water catchment area in Indonesia is approximately 86 thousand hectares. This is also a huge potential for the development of floating solar, “he suggested.

‘It is time for Indonesia to become a solar powerhouse’

The Institute for Essential Services Reform (IESR), a Jakarta-based think tank, has emerged as a key voice calling for solar development in Indonesia. pv magazine recently caught up with Marlistya Citraningrum, the institute’s program manager for sustainable energy access, to look at what is still needed on the policy side for the archipelago nation to realize its massive PV potential.

Interview with pvmagazine – for complete article please visit this link.

Kembangkan industri photovoltaic di dalam negeri, Indonesia bisa belajar dari India

Pemerintah Indonesia terkait (Kementerian Perindustrian dan Kementerian Energi dan Sumber Daya Mineral) bisa belajar dari India. Kita perlu kebijakan industri yang fleksible. Penerapan TKDN penting tapi jangan sampai menghambat pembentukan pasar dan perkembangan PLTS yang kompetitif. 

Sumber Berita: https://www.pv-tech.org/news/India-proposes-20-customs-duty-on-solar-imports-in-2020-2021-budget
India proposes tax cuts for new IPPs and 20% customs duty on solar imports | Sumber Berita: https://www.pv-tech.org/news/India-proposes-20-customs-duty-on-solar-imports-in-2020-2021-budget

Presiden RI Joko Widodo bisa merevolusi pemanfaatan energi surya sekaligus membangun industri surya di Indonesia dengan belajar dari India. Apa yang dilakukan pemerintah India:

1) Tetapkan target nasional PV yang ambisius; 

2) Bangun permintaan dan pasar untuk teknologi PV lewat program nasional yang dilakukan secara konsisten. India punya target PV 100 GWp sampai 2022; 

3) Ijinkan impor modul surya dan PV dalam prosesnya tapi Research & Development dan penguatan industri dalam negeri dilakukan; 

4) Setelah industri perakitan sel dan modul surya tumbuh dengan kapasitas >3 GWp per tahun, pemerintah menjamin pasar melalui mandatory policy penggunaan modul surya untuk proyek2 yang dapat subsidi/dukungan finansial pemerintah; 

5) Program solar park skala besar dikembangkan dan membuat harga listrik dari PLTS lebih murah dan kompetitif, industri PV dalam negeri “dipaksa” melakukan inovasi dan efisiensi; 

6) Setelah industri PV dalam negeri berkembang dan kompetitif, pemerintah menetapkan bea masuk 20% atas sel dan modul surya impor. Sebaliknya investasi di pembangkit PLTS diberikan insentif pengurangan pajak, untuk menjaga pertumbuhan permintaan sehingga output industri dapat diserap. 

Lewat kombinasi target energi surya, India bisa meningkatkan kapasitas industri sel surya dari 3 GWp pada 2014 menjadi 29 GWp pada 2019. 

IESR merekomendasikan Pak Jokowi ‘all out’ mendorong pengembangan energi surya. Sampai 2030, kita punya potensi 30 GWp utility scale PLTS dan 15 GWp PLTS Atap. Target RUEN hanya 6,5 GWp sampai 2025. Presiden harus menugaskan PLN untuk agresif membangun PLTS skala besar di Indonesia, diatas tanah dan diatas danau/bendungan. Dalam 5 tahun ke depan 5 GWp PLTS skala besar dapat dipasang. Kemudian dorong pemanfaatan PLTS Atap di seluruh gedung pemerintah sesuai amanat Perpres No. 22/2017 dan substitusi subsidi listrik rumah tangga miskin 450 VA dengan PLTS Atap 1-1,5 kWp per rumah. 

Untuk yang PLTS Atap bagi rumah tangga miskin, Pemerintah (Jokowi.red)  bisa prioritaskan pemakaian modul surya dalam negeri. Jika 500 ribu – 1 juta rumah tangga miskin bisa pasang PLTS Atap setiap tahun, kebutuhan modul mencapai 1-1,5 GWp, ini cukup untuk membuat industri surya yang terintegrasi dari wafer-sel-modul surya dan industri pendukungnya.

Presiden Jokowi bisa mendorong provinsi – provinsi di Indonesia untuk melakukan program PLTS dan memperkuat inisiatif seperti #JatengSolarRevolution oleh Ganjar Pranowo, Gubernur Jawa Tengah dan #BaliCleanEnergyIsland oleh I Wayan Koster, Gubernur Bali, serta inisiatif Pemprov DKI Jakarta. 

Indonesia bisa mencapai 23% energi terbarukan di 2025, perlu strong leadership President Jokowi

#SuryaNusantara #1BY20 #SolarRevolution