JAKARTA (Reuters) – Indonesian state utility Perusahaan Listrik Negara (PLN) will need up to $172 billion of investment in renewable energy projects and upgrades for its electricity grid to add 60 gigawatt of new renewable power capacity, a director said on Thursday.
PLN aims to build 32 GW of new renewable power capacity as a base load, its chief executive said a day earlier, and build new grids to connect a further 28 GW of renewable power as variable load.
“We are preparing to build around 60 gigawatt renewable power plant up to 2040. Around 30-34 gigawatt on base loader, 28 gigawatt is variable renewable energy,” PLN Director Evy Haryadi told an industry forum.
He did not provide details on the amount of investments needed for the renewable power generation.
The $172 billion investment until 2040 would also include $5 billion spending for a smart grid, he added, which would allow more penetration of variable renewable energy such as solar and wind power to Indonesia’s electricity system.
“There is no transition without transmission.
That is the first challenge, how we transmit power from the fairly remote location to the demand,” Evy said.
The move would be part of Indonesia’s efforts to reduce its reliance on coal-fired power plants that make up the majority of the country’s power plants as Southeast Asia’s biggest economy has pledged to reach net zero emission by 2060.
(Reporting by Bernadette Christina Munthe; Editing by Susan Fenton)
