Publish Carbon Credit, Pertamina NRE Report 90 Percent Already Sold

Carbon illustration (Photo: Antara)

JAKARTA - Pertamina New & Renewable Energy (Pertamina NRE) has again issued high-quality carbon loans with a total volume of 35,475 tons of CO2e.

Pertamina NRE CEO John Anis explained that this carbon credit came from a biogas power plant (PLTBg) located in the Sei Mangkei Special Economic Zone (SEZ).

"With this carbon credit, Pertamina NRE reduces emissions equivalent to more than 8,000 gasoline-fueled cars or emission reductions that are equivalent to planting 570,000 trees per year," said John, Tuesday, November 18.

Of the total volume, 90.4 percent or 32,060 tons of CO2e have been sold. This carbon credit buyer is a national company from various sectors such as banking, trade, and the extractive industry.

"We don't expect this newly published carbon credit to be absorbed so quickly by the market. This shows that the demand for carbon credit in Indonesia is very high. We are optimistic that national carbon trading will develop rapidly, especially when the regulations are getting more mature," continued John.

With carbon credit, he continued, the public can participate in offsetting or carbon compensation to help decarbonize or reduce the impact of carbon emissions.

John also appreciated the government's move to sign mutual recognition agreements with international carbon standard institutions such as Gold Standard and Verra, thus opening up greater opportunities for Indonesia to contribute to the global carbon market.

PLTBg Sei Mangkei operates since 2020 and is the result of collaboration between Pertamina NRE and PT Perkebunan Nusantara III (PTPN III). Carbon loans sourced from PLTBg Sei Mangkei which use covered lagoon technology, are calculated from the use of palm oil liquid waste or commonly known as palm oil mill effluent (POME) and the operation of biogas power plants which are renewable energy.

Pertamina NRE has successfully sold out its initial carbon credit with a volume of 864,209 tons of CO2e sourced from the Lahendong area of geothermal power (PLTP) units 5 and 6. The carbon credit trade carried out by Pertamina NRE has a very strategic role in supporting the carbon exchange (IDX Carbon) launched by the government in September 2023.

John added that with the renewable energy portfolio it manages, Pertamina NRE will actively issue more carbon loans. Apart from the Sei Mangkei PLTBg, Pertamina NRE will soon issue carbon Volume 3 loans from the Lahendong Unit 5 and 6 PLTP areas with an estimated volume of 465,131 tons of CO2e.