PLN EPI Commissioner Confident That 3 Million Tons of Biomass Target Will Be Achieved This Year
JAKARTA - President Commissioner of PLN Energi Primer Indonesia (EPI), Nikson Silalahi, is optimistic that this year's target of 3 million tons of biomass for co-firing PLN's coal-fired power plants (PLTUs) can be achieved.
"As of July 2025, PLN Energi Primer Indonesia has supplied almost 1.2 million tons, and we are working hard to achieve the 3 million ton target by December 2025," said Nikson Silalahi, quoted on Friday, August 22.
According to Nikson, to manage the biomass supply chain to the PLTU, PLN EPI has built an integrated biomass supply chain ecosystem from upstream to downstream through four steps.
First, it includes the cultivation of energy crops on dry and marginal lands through community-based approaches such as cooperatives, village-owned enterprises (BUMDes), and farmer groups (Gapoktan).
Second, the utilization of agricultural, plantation, and forestry waste as biomass raw materials. Third, the development of a logistics infrastructure or supply chain consisting of Sub Hubs, Hubs, and Main Hubs for the collection, processing, and distribution of biomass to the PLTU.
"And fourth, involving cooperatives as a liaison between farmers and processing facilities and to strengthen supply security," Nikson explained.
On that occasion, Nikson also explained that to meet the biomass demand of 10.2 million tons per year by 2025, PLN EPI has taken several steps, such as implementing the Green Economy Village (GEV) program in various regions, such as Gunung Kidul, Cilacap, and Tasikmalaya, with a total of more than 953,000 energy crop seedlings planted on over 760 hectares of land.
In addition, PLN EPI is also developing an integrated farming system that combines energy crops, food crops, and livestock. This program has involved more than 1,000 farmers and dozens of farmer groups in biomass planting and utilization. It targets cofiring at 52 coal-fired power plants (PLTUs), with implementation at 48 locations by the second quarter of 2025.
Nikson also explained that PLN EPI continues to develop cofiring technology, which involves blending biomass with coal in coal-fired power plants as a fast and efficient energy transition solution.
This program has yielded positive results in the form of a reduction in CO₂ emissions of 3.3 million tons per year by 2025, and increased energy efficiency with a continuously increasing biomass calorific value (up to 3,138 kCal/kg).
Another positive aspect is the diversification of biomass types from three in 2020 to 14 by 2025, including Kaliandra, Gamal, Indigofera, rice husks, and corn cobs.
From an economic perspective, biomass prices are competitively adjusted, ranging from 85 percent to 120 percent of coal prices, depending on the Cost, Insurance, and Freight (CIF) or Free On Board (FOB) scheme and transportation costs.