The Ministry Of Energy And Mineral Resources Calls The Electricity Price Of The EBT Plant More Competitive

Secretary General of the Ministry of Energy and Mineral Resources (ESDM) Dadan Kusdiana. (Photo: Doc. Antara)

JAKARTA - Secretary General of the Ministry of Energy and Mineral Resources (ESDM) Dadan Kusdiana said the electricity price of the new renewable energy plant (EBT) is close to the fossil-based electricity price, some are even more efficient.

Dadan said the positive development made a balance of business competition between EBT and fossil energy. Thus, the government has strong reasons to make EBT a source of energy.

"Economically, PLTB Sidrap and PLTB Jeneponto in 2016, the electricity contract signed and approved by the Minister of Energy and Mineral Resources, costs 10.9 cents per kWh. Now, there is a new PLTB contract in South Kalimantan in early 2023, the capacity is approximately 75 megawatts (MW)," Dadan said in a written statement, quoted from Antara, Monday, December 18.

Dadan conveyed this during a discussion entitled "NZEdah for New Business Opportunities for the ESDM Sector" in Bandung City, West Java, Saturday (16/12).

"When compared to the price 6-7 years ago, now the figure is below 6 cents per kWh," continued Dadan.

The Ministry of Energy and Mineral Resources stated that advances in renewable energy technology, particularly in the solar power generation (PLTS) and wind (PLTB) sectors, have enabled higher efficiency, resulting in a lower reduction in electricity production costs compared to fossil energy plants.

He also compared the price of EBT plants with the price of fossil energy-based power plants, such as coal (PLTU). In fact, he assessed that the price of green energy is even cheaper. This shows that power plants from EBT can be more competitive.

"The electricity price of the Citata PLTS (5.8 cents per kWh) is below 6 cents per kWh as well. If you want to just count, for example, the production of electricity from one kWh of coal needs about 0.7 to 0.8 kilos of coal. So, the fuel component can be directly calculated there. The figure must be more expensive than the previous one. Is this EBT competitive? Now the tendency is there," he said.

With the reference coal price (HBA) ranging from 125-130 US dollars per ton, the electricity price from EBT can already compete with fossil-based electricity prices.

"With HBA currently ranging from around 130 US dollars per ton, this is already competitive. So, this EBT has now entered the economic scale. We can only head to head with fossils. So, the narrative that I want to build is now there is no longer any reason not to use EBT," said Dadan.