PLN Receives US$1 Million Grant For EBT Development In Eastern Indonesia

US dollar (Photo: Unsplash)

PT PLN (Persero) received a grant of around US$1 million from the United States Trade and Development Agency (USTDA).

The grant funds are to support a feasibility study on the development of new renewable energy infrastructure (EBT) run by PLN in the five outermost, frontier and underdeveloped regions (3T) in Eastern Indonesia.

"Collaboration is very important to accelerate the energy transition in Indonesia. This partnership is of course in line with PLN's goal to increase the mix of renewable energy in order to realize Net Zero Emissions," said PLN President Director Darmawan Prasodjo in an official statement, Tuesday, February 13.

PLN Finance Director Sinthya Roesly said that the grant fund of around USD 1 million will be used to finance the services needed in connection with the preparation of a technical and economic feasibility study of Indonesia's mini-grid EBT project in the 3T region of Eastern Indonesia.

This activity includes the design of detailed engineering solutions, evaluation of economic impacts, the environment, and other impacts of EBT power plants when implemented. This study is also important to analyze and support the implementation of PLN in preparing for the EBT project in the 3T region in the future.

Through this collaboration, we want to increase access to electricity in five 3T areas to 24 hours through green energy support. I hope this collaboration will be the first step that can have a big influence on the people of Indonesia," said Sinthya.

Sinthya continued with USTDA, PLN will develop a hybrid plant by collaborating between the existing Diesel Power Plant (PLTD) and Solar PV and battery storage in five potential 3T locations in Eastern Indonesia.

"We are committed to carrying out an energy transition roadmap based on energy trilema, namely energy security, energy equity, environmental sustainability. Through quality studies and development, we are optimistic that the distribution of EBT can be carried out fairly, affordablely, and can be accepted by the community reliably and with quality," added Sinthya.

Director of USTDA Enoh T. Ebong said that the collaboration between the development of EBT and PLN is in line with the global vision of USTDA in encouraging sustainability growth in developing countries. His party sees that the transformation of the use of EBT will have implications for mitigating the climate crisis, especially through the provision of reliable access to electricity.

Our partnership with PLN demonstrates the United States' commitment to support Indonesia's energy transition and long-term economic development ambitions for Indonesia. By offering available technical resources and technology, we see great opportunities to expand access to environmentally friendly energy throughout Indonesia," explained Enoh T. Ebong.

The Charge d'Affaires ad interim US Embassy Indonesia, Michael F. Kleine added, USTDA's funding assistance is in line with the results of a meeting between the President of the Republic of Indonesia Joko Widodo and US President Joe Biden last year regarding efforts to improve bilateral relations between the two countries, one of which is through clean energy cooperation.

"Therefore, we at the US Embassy are very excited about this project, through innovation and trade collaboration, with the same goal. We will achieve the goals we want and once again make this year not just a year of prosperity, but also clean energy," Michael concluded.