Barito Renewables' Commitment To Develop Renewable Energy In Indonesia

JAKARTA - One of the EBT development companies, namely PT Barito Renewables Energy Tbk (BREN) through its subsidiary Star Energy Geothermal, emphasized its commitment to supporting the use of EBT by increasing the installed capacity announced at the International Geothermal Conference and Exhibition 2024 (IIGCE) event in Jakarta, last week.

This strategic initiative aims to increase the capacity of Star Energy Geothermal through respending projects and additional new capacities, which will not only increase the capacity of various geothermal units operated by Star Energy, but also support Indonesia's efforts to achieve the net zero emission target.

"This is an important moment for us to advance Indonesia's renewable energy infrastructure. By retrofitting and increasing the capacity of existing power plants, we ensure a sustainable and efficient future for clean energy in this country," said CEO of BREN, Hendra Tan, in his statement, Wednesday, September 25.

In total, Star Energy Geothermal installed capacity will increase by 102.6 MW, thereby strengthening its position as one of the leading geothermal energy companies in the world. The total investment is estimated at 346 million US dollars.

In addition to increasing installed capacity on the Star Energy Geothermal, BREN has also announced a strategic partnership with ACEN, a publicly registered energy company from the Ayala group. This partnership will be implemented through ACEN's subsidiary, ACEN Indonesia Investment Holdings Pte. Ltd., and a subsidiary of Barito Renewables, PT Barito Wind Energy.

This partnership was built based on important acquisitions in 2024 of three wind energy development assets that are in the final stages in South Sulawesi, Sukabumi, and Lombok. The assets collectively offer a potential capacity of 320 MW of wind energy, equipped with advanced battery energy storage solutions, which are ready to improve network stability and efficiency throughout the region.

Director General of New, Renewable Energy and Energy Conservation (EBTKE) of the Ministry of Energy and Mineral Resources (ESDM), Eniya Listiani Dewi, said that currently only 0.3 percent of the use of EBT is carried out from the total energy potential.

"Our current EBT has only used 0.3 percent of the 3.4 TeraWatt potential," said Eniya when speaking on Tuesday, September 24, 2024 at the Borobudur Hotel, Central Jakarta.

The potential for new and renewable energy (EBT) in Indonesia has not yet been fully executed. According to Eniya, this great potential for EBT should be used as well as possible to maintain national energy security and meet the target of achieving the EBT mix.

"The potential and utilization of EBT is a concern of the Minister of Energy and Mineral Resources who always asks how much our EBT is," said Eniya.

In order for the use of this EBT to be realized better, quality investment is needed. According to Eniya, investment in the renewable energy sector is still far behind other sectors. Whereas until 2030 alone, Eniya claimed to need investment of up to 15.9 billion US dollars.

"Of course at this time for our investment we need an investment of 15.9 billion US dollars by 2030, this is what is still a lot behind," said Eniya.